The Oklahoma Farm to School Program enriches the connection communities have with fresh, healthy food and local food producers by changing food purchasing and education practices at schools and early care and education sites.
The Oklahoma Department of Agriculture and Farm Bureau Women’s Leadership Team are excited to announce the 2023 Statewide School Garden Contest results!
Congratulations to the following category winners:
Best Overall School Garden:
Positive Tomorrow School
Best Startup Garden:
Maysville Elementary School
Best Education Based Garden:
Eugene Field Elementary
Best Harvest Partnership School Garden:
Redbud Farm School
Best Community Collaboration School Garden:
Oologah-Talala Lower Elementary
To learn more about these schools and their gardens, please visit the link below.
PROFESSIONAL LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES
When: Friday, December 8, 2023
Where: Northeast Oklahoma - Kellyville, Sapulpa, Owasso, Sand Springs
Join us for this one day Specialty Crop bus tour. We will be visiting Christmas Trees, Pecans, and much more around NE Oklahoma. Tour begins at 8:30 am and will conclude by 4:30 pm. Lunch will be provided. There are only a few spots left, so register today!
It’s time for another awesome workshop! Teachers will experience a sample Ag Day and spend the afternoon with expert Ag Day panelist. Catered lunch will be provided. “How to have an Ag Day” Teacher Workshop sponsored by the Oklahoma Soybean Board
When: Saturday January 13th, 2024: 10am-3pm
Location: Totusek Arena & Classroom
2601 West McElroy
Stillwater, Oklahoma 74074
(Next door to the Cline Equine Center)
To register for this event, please visit the link below.
2024 Farm to School Grant Request for Applications is Now Open!
Deadline: January 24, 2024
The USDA Farm to School Program is excited to announce the official release of the fiscal year (FY) 2024 Farm to School Grant Program Request for Applications (RFA). USDA will award up to $12 million in million in grant awards for activities such as training, supporting operations, planning, purchasing equipment, developing school gardens, and implementing farm to school programs. Each grant will help implement farm to school programming that increases access to local food in eligible schools, connects children with agriculture for better health, and inspires youth to consider careers in agriculture.
The RFA includes five tracks - Implementation, State Agency, and three Turnkey grants - to support a variety of projects and implementation stages.
The grant program takes a comprehensive approach to advancing equity for all in farm to school programming by prioritizing applications serving at least 40 percent of students who are eligible for free or reduced-price meals; applications from Indian Tribal Organizations (ITOs) serving tribal communities; applications from organizations led by and serving Black, Indigenous or other communities of color; applications based in and serving rural communities; and applications from agricultural producers or groups of agricultural producers.
If you or an organization you know wants to apply, please visit the Resources for Farm to School Grant Program Applicants webpage for more information. Complete applications must be submitted to Grants.gov by 11:59 pm ET on Friday, January 12, 2024.
Technical Assistance Available for Agricultural Producers who have Experienced Discrimination in USDA Farm Loan Processes
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has just officially opened the claims process for Section 22007 of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which provides $2.2 billion in financial assistance for farmers, ranchers, and forest landowners who have experienced discrimination in USDA’s farm lending programs prior to January 1, 2021. IRA Section 22007 is not a lawsuit and there is no fee to apply or to receive assistance in applying. To support producers throughout the application process, USDA is ensuring that organizations with extensive experience conducting outreach to farm organizations are able to support individuals who may be eligible for the program. These groups include AgrAbility, Farmer Veteran Coalition, Farmers’ Legal Action Group, Federation of Southern Cooperatives, Intertribal Agriculture Council, Land Loss Prevention Project, National Young Farmers Coalition, and Rural Coalition.
Learn more here.
2024 Youth Garden Grant, KidsGardening
Deadline: December 15, 2023
Since 1982, the Youth Garden Grant has supported school and youth educational garden projects that enhance the quality of life for students and their communities. In 2024, fifty programs will receive award packages consisting of a cash prize and a variety of gardening tools and supplies. Any organization in the United States or US Territories planning a new or improving an existing garden program that serves at least 15 youth between the ages of 0 and 18 is eligible to apply.
Learn more and apply here.
SeedMoney Garden Grants
Deadline: December 15, 2023
SeedMoney is offering challenge grants to diverse food garden projects through a 30-day crowdfunding challenge running from November 15 to December 15. Grants are open to all types of public food garden projects (youth gardens, community gardens, food bank gardens, etc.) regardless of their location. The size of a grant a project can receive depends on how much it is able to raise over the 30-day period compared to other projects participating in the challenge. This year, SeedMoney will be offering a total of 408 grants ranging from $100 to $1000.
Learn more here.
PLANTS Grant
Deadline: January 22, 2024
Applications for Chef Ann Foundation’s newest grant program Partnerships for Local Agriculture & Nutrition Transformation in Schools (PLANTS) open November 27th. They are seeking proposals for projects led by groups of local partners with systemic and equity-driven approaches to transforming school food supply chains. Projects should seek to build and strengthen relationships among community-based food system stakeholders and School Food Authorities (SFAs) as well as expand scratch cooking in schools in order to build more nourishing school meal programs. Grant awards will be between $500,000 and $600,000 and will not require grantees to match funding. Entities eligible to apply include School Food Authorities, food producers, food distributors and aggregators, nonprofits, and local government agencies.
Learn more here.
Salad Bars to Schools Grant
The Salad Bars to Schools (SB2S) Program is a partnership between the Chef Ann Foundation and Whole Kids Foundation. Any district or independent school participating in the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) is eligible to apply. To qualify for a SB2S grant, you must offer the salad bar as part of the reimbursable meal served in your district. The food services director for your district is the required contact person for the application.
Learn More and Apply
Free Resources Available for Classrooms, Cafeterias and Families
Tasteful Harvest features ready-to-go tools and resources that can be used in diverse applications to support healthy eating and daily physical activity. These tools and resources can be used in a variety of settings, including:
- Classrooms K-12
- After-school programs
- Early Care & Education Centers
- Farmers’ markets
- County Extension Educators
- Other venues for agriculture and nutrition education
Download our free resources, including the Classroom Connection, Family Connection, and Cafeteria Connection. All items have been updated in 2020 and contain current nutrition information and USDA-approved content. These educational resources were created for classrooms, cafeterias, and families to promote Oklahoma-grown vegetables and fruits offered during meals.
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