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FRANKFORT — A federal farm grant will help expand use of locally grown foods at schools in two area counties.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture approved a $60,000 rural development grant for a Farm to School program for Frankfort-Elberta Area School District, Onekama Consolidated Schools and other districts in Benzie and Manistee counties. The grant will be administered by the Alliance for Economic Success based in Manistee, and other partners include Manistee Intermediate School District, Traverse Bay Area Intermediate School District, the Michigan Land Use Institute, and local farmers and food processors.
Organizers said the grant will be used to implement the Farm to School program developed by Frankfort-Elberta Schools in the Onekama Consolidated School District in the 2010-11 academic year and later to bring the program to other districts in Manistee County. The Frankfort-Elberta program, coordinated by staff member Renee DeWindt, emphasizes locally produced food and products and significantly has increased participation in its food-service program that serves more than 2,500 students in Benzie County.
"At the center of all of this is our students and their families who will be healthier and more fit by integrating fresh foods into their daily activities," said Onekama Schools Superintendent Kevin Hughes.
The four-phase effort will include organizing a "leadership team" for the project, staff and student training and education, implementation of a Farm to School program in Onekama this fall, and plans to expand into other school districts in Benzie and Manistee counties.
"With careful planning and training of food service staff, we've found that we can integrate locally grown foods into breakfast and lunch menus, and actually lower the overall costs of our food service program," DeWindt said.
