• November 2025: New FFVP Grantees (grantees who did not receive an FFVP award in 2024) must begin their programming in November 2025!

NATIONAL FARM TO SCHOOL PODCAST

Officially at 12,000 downloads! With listeners in 54 countries!

New Episodes: We have new episodes of the Farm to School Podcast! Check out the latest Farm to School Podcast episodes below!

From museum magic to school lunch makeovers, this episode dishes up a coast-to-coast journey with The Henry Ford’s Spence Medford and Christy Sherding. Discover how a historic innovation hub is shaking up school meals, spotlighting edible education, and launching a national movement—complete with chefs, students, and a documentary premiere. Hungry for change? Grab your lunch tray and tune in!

You can listen to the episode here.

Today we’re taking you behind the scenes of something that doesn’t always sound exciting, but shapes everything we do—strategic planning. Stick with us, because this isn’t your typical, dry ‘vision statement’ talk. This is the story of how one state brought together farmers, schools, nonprofits, and agencies to chart a bold 10-year vision for Farm to School. We’ll share how hundreds of voices shaped the process, why it matters far beyond Oregon, and how a plan “on paper” can actually spark a movement.

You can listen to the episode here.

We're thrilled to share on behalf of the Oregon Farm to School Network that the 2025 Farm to School Month Crunch at Once had a fabulous turn out!

80 schools and community sites including 42,149 students and adults from across Oregon participated in the Crunch at Once. Students throughout the state crunched into apples, rainbow carrots, kohlrabi, chips with homemade salsa, tomatoes, cabbage, quince, and so much more — a true testament of Oregon's agricultural diversity.

Shared on behalf of Ecotrust:

Save the date for Local Link 2025! Wednesday, November 12, 2025 from 9am-12pm, at The Redd on Salmon (831 SE Salmon St., Portland, OR).

Local Link is a vendor fair and networking opportunity. Want to learn more about Local Link and working with schools and other institutions? Tune in for an info session for producers and local food businesses:

Check the Local Link webpage for more details over the upcoming weeks.

Photo courtesy of ecotrust.org/local-link.

Shared on behalf of USDA Food and Nutrition Service:

USDA Food and Nutrition Service is pleased to announce the release of the Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 Farm to School Grant Program Request for Applications (RFA)!
This competitive grant will fund innovative farm to school projects ranging from $100,000 to $500,000 for a total of up to $18 million. Eligible entities include state and local agencies, Tribes, child nutrition program operators, small- to medium-sized agriculture producers, groups of agricultural producers, and nonprofits.

If you are interested in this grant opportunity, please read the full RFA before applying. Complete applications must be submitted by 11:59 PM Eastern Time on December 5, 2025.

The Oregon Farm to School Conference brings together the diverse farm to school community who make our state's programs thrive. This 2-day event creates space for learning, networking, and inspiration as we work toward a common goal: providing farm and garden-based education and incorporating healthy, local food into school meals for Oregon students from PreK-12. The next conference will take place on January 29 to 30, 2026 at the OSU Alumni Center in Corvallis. 

• Registration will open in November! Visit their website to register.
• Host a lightning talk, workshop, or short course at the conference! Submit your proposal here. 

Registration and scholarships are open for the Growing School Gardens Summit! The Summit takes place over February 19-22, 2026 in Phoenix, Arizona! This event brings together over 700 school garden educators for four days of hands-on learning! Now in its third year, this event continues sparking new ideas, strengthening connections, and supporting the growth of school garden programs nationwide.

Learn more and register at SchoolGardenSummit.org

Shared on behalf of the National Farm to School Network:

A More Accessible, Action-Oriented, and Impactful Food Systems Conference
The National Farm to School Network is proud to present the 10th National Farm to Cafeteria Conference, taking place December 1–4, 2025, in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The Farm to Cafeteria Conference has been thoughtfully updated to better serve the evolving needs of food system leaders across the country and advance a more resilient and equitable food future.

Registration is open!

A survey conducted out of Elon University is gathering experiences with and perspectives on effective garden-based education.

Studies show the benefits -- academic, social, emotional, physical -- of school and community gardens. This study is about the EDUCATORS. The survey aims to capture what experienced, effective garden-based educators believe and do -- and why.
The study starts with a short survey that will take about 10 minutes or less, and there will be an option to indicate your willingness to participate in a 45-ish minute interview (Gift cards are offered as a thanks to those who do an interview!)

You can participate in the survey by copy and pasting this link into your browser: bit.ly/gardenbasededucation

Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program (FFVP)

The current grant period is October 1, 2025, to September 30, 2026. Awardees should submit FFVP claims monthly.

• Reminder: New Grantees (grantees who did not receive an FFVP award in 2024) must begin FFVP programming within the second month of the grant period (November). Returning Grantees (grantees who did receive an FFVP award in 2024) were required to begin FFVP programming in October.
• Claim submission deadlines have changed: View the submission deadlines on the FFVP webpage under "Claim Resources and Documents."
• Bimonthly FFVP open office hours: Wednesday, December 3rd from 2:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. Join the call anytime during the hour to ask FFVP-related questions, get technical assistance on claims, or connect with the team about program operations and best practice.
  • Have a FFVP question or topic you'd like to explore or get help on? Send it to ODE.FFVP@ode.oregon.gov and it may be featured in the Bimonthly FFVP open office hours!
• Curious what other schools are purchasing with their FFVP funds? A list of fruits and vegetables purchased during the 2023-2024 school year is available on the ODE FFVP webpage. 

Any questions can be sent to us at ODE.FFVP@ode.oregon.gov.

All eligible NSLP, CACFP, and SFSP CNP sponsors were automatically opted in to receive a Noncompetitive Reimbursement Grant for the 2025-2027 biennium (July 1, 2025-June 30, 2027).

The Grant’s start date is retroactive and you can submit claims for items purchased starting July 1, 2025 when your Grant Agreement has been signed and returned to ODE. Please review your unofficial grant notification email for necessary next steps and visit the ODE NCRG webpage to review the 2025-2027 grant timeline. Grant agreements were sent for signatures from ODE Procurement on October 3. If you have general questions about the grant program email FarmtoCNP@ode.oregon.gov, if you have questions about your agreement email, contact Mary.Piper@ode.oregon.gov. 

Resource spotlight: The 2024-2025 Farm to CNP Combined Claims File​ is live on the NCRG webpage! ​The Farm to CNP Reimbursement Grant Combined Claims Excel file is a list of eligible purchases made by other grantees during the previous grant period. The list can be sorted by county, product, vendor, etc.​

Curious what other schools are purchasing with their funds? Visit the Farm to CNP Reimbursement Grant webpage for grant resources. Visit the Oregon Harvest for Schools Directory for a directory of Oregon producers ready to sell to schools!

Please let the Farm to CNP team know at FarmtoCNP@ode.oregon.gov if you have any questions.

Competitive Reimbursement Grant

The Competitive Reimbursement Grant(CRG) provides eligible grantees with additional funding beyond their Noncompetitive Reimbursement Grant awards. To be eligible, applicants must have received a Farm to CNP Noncompetitive Reimbursement Grant award and fully expended those funds.

2025-2027 biennium applications are expected to open in early 2026.

Education Grant

The 2025-2027 Education Grant RFA is open!

The Request for Application is posted on OregonBuys.

General Information about this grant program can be found on the Education Grant webpage.