Farm to School & Early Childhood Grant Program Impacts

Submitted by tim on Mon, 03/07/2022 - 05:26

Agency of Agriculture, Food & Markets Vibrant school gardens bustling with students learning to grow food. School cafeterias serving nutritious meals made with locally produced ingredients. Children taking field trips to local farms to pick up their community supported agriculture (CSA) share. These are just some of the impacts of the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food & Markets’ Farm to School and Early Childhood grant programs.

Since it was established in 2006, hundreds of schools and early childhood education (ECE) providers, and over 50,000 Vermont students and children have benefited from the financial and technical support offered through these annual grants. Whether it’s developing a holistic farm to school program through the Farm to School and Early Childhood grant, accessing locally grown food through the Community Supported Agriculture grant, or developing innovative farm to school initiatives through the Farm to School Vision grant, these programs provide critical support to Vermont educators, students, farmers and communities.

To learn more about the impact of these programs, including how they’ve helped schools and ECEs respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, check out the latest impact report. Questions about these programs can be directed to Trevor Lowell.

Read the 2021 Impact Report Here

Produce Safety Planning

The Community Accreditation for Produce Safety (CAPS) program helps fruit and vegetable growers adopt and be recognized for their food safety practices. Using the CAPS online platform, growers draft and implement comprehensive farm food safety plans that feature widely accepted best practices. Multiple levels of participation are available, from starting a new plan to receiving an on-farm verification audit accepted by many buyers in the Northeast. Farms can join any time. The deadline for new plans is April 1 to receive feedback from peers and experts this season.

Northern Forest Center Webinar

What does it mean to be a “welcoming community?” How are communities creating an environment that makes everyone – locals, new residents, and tourists – feel comfortable and accepted?

Join the Northern Forest Center for the fourth webinar in their Building a New Forest Future series, Cultivating Welcoming Communities. This webinar will explore the importance of welcoming communities and how to create them with leaders from across the region. Free to attend, but registration is required.

Webinar: Mar. 15 @ 12 p.m.

Vermont Wood Works Meet-Up

The Vermont Wood Works Council supports the wood working, wood crafts, and forest products industry in Vermont.

Join the Vermont Wood Works Council and other Vermont-based Wood Shops at Vermont Islands in Brattleboro for an In-Person Meet-up! Attendees will tour Vermont Islands and listen to a speaker from Vycom before walking over for a tour of Vermont Plank and Adaptive Fabrication.

In-Person Meet-Up: Mar. 16 @ 3 p.m.

Virtual Saffron Workshop

The North American Center for Saffron Research and Development is proud to present the 2022 Saffron Workshop "Saffron Cultivation from Here to There". This year's workshop will be held online in two sessions for those who grow, sell, or study saffron now, or will in the future. Saffron experts from Spain, Iran, and the US will share their knowledge at this online event. Registration for the two sessions combined is $55.

Webinars: Session I Mar. 23 @ 11 a.m. Session II Mar. 30 @ 11 a.m.

Deadline Extended to Enroll in 2022 Dairy Margin Coverage

View the VAAFM Grants Calendar