The Maryland State Department of Education will increase its purchase of local foods for school meal programs with the help of more than $2.9 million from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Marketing Service.
The department of education will participate in the Local Food for Schools Cooperative Agreement Program by purchasing and distributing local and regional foods plus beverages that schools serve to children through the National School Lunch and School Breakfast programs, a Jan. 3 news release said.
“This cooperative agreement supporting Maryland schools is another example of how USDA is working to build a more resilient food system rooted in local and regional production,” USDA Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs Jenny Lester Moffitt said in the release. “The Local Food for Schools Cooperative Agreement Program provides an opportunity for states to strengthen ties between local farmers, ranchers, food businesses and schools and gives students access to nutritious foods unique to the area they live in, building stronger connections across local communities.”
The project will help increase local foods’ use in school meals programs and expand distribution for producers, the release said.
“Strengthening relationships between local producers and schools is a long-term strategy to ensure our children always have access to nutritious foods in school, a win-win for child health and American agriculture,” Deputy Under Secretary for Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services Stacy Dean said in the release. “Through this program and many other efforts to support the school meal programs, USDA is committed to giving schools the tools they need to set children up to learn, grow and thrive.”
