Farm-to-college resources

Below are several recommended resources and Web sites to help you start or expand a farm-to-college project. Please contact us if you have additional resources or Web sites to suggest.

Publications
     Community Food Security Coalition publications
     Other publications
     Student research
Web sites
Listservs
Curricular resources on gardening, cooking, nutrition and the food system
Information on farmer-managed/owned cooperatives
Resources for locating local farm products
     How to locate farmers or farmer organizations
     Networks or distributors that work with local farm products

Publications

Community Food Security Coalition publications

For a complete list of CFSC publications on all topics, see http://www.foodsecurity.org/pubs.html.

Farm to Hospital: Supporting Local Agriculture and Improving Health Care [PDF, 221k]
(2007, Moira Beery, Center for Food & Justice, and Kristen Markley, Community Food Security Coalition)
This brochure introduces interested farmers and hospital food service departments to the ins and outs of developing partnerships between hospitals and local farms. Included are examples of ways hospitals can improve the food they offer, issues for farmers to consider if they are interested in selling products to area hospitals, and specific case studies of successful programs.

Farmer Resource Guide: Managing Risk Through Sales to Educational Institutions
(2004, Community Food Security Coalition and the Center for Food & Justice, Occidental College. $12 plus shipping; order online)
An extensive compilation of resources that address the many different issues within farm-to-institutional purchasing projects, including how to approach food service directors, how to organize supply and distribution of the products, characteristics of different institutions, pricing issues, and several case studies of different types of farm-to-institution projects.

Feeding Young Minds: Hands-on Farm-to-School Education Programs
(2005, Marion Kalb & Kristen Markley, Community Food Security Coalition. $10 plus shipping; order online)
Focusing on educational activities that complement local purchasing for school meals, this booklet highlights farm-to-school experiential education programs from around the country. These range from cooking classes in New Mexico, to school fundraisers in Ohio, to kindergartners tasting watermelon radishes in Pennsylvania. A resource section is also included.

Going Local: Paths to Success for Farm to School Programs [PDF, 5.6M]
(2007, Anupama Joshi, Marion Kalb, and Moira Beery of the National Farm to School Program: Center for Food & Justice, Occidental College and the Community Food Security Coalition)
With case studies from eight states - California, Florida, Illinois, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Hamphire, North Carolina, and Oregon, the publication provides a snapshot of the diverse ways in which farm to school is making a difference nationwide.

Healthy Farms, Healthy Kids: Evaluating the Barriers and Opportunities for Farm-to-School Programs
(2001, Andrea Azuma & Andy Fisher, Community Food Security Coalition. $12 plus shipping; order online)
Provides case studies of programs at the K-12 level and includes policy recommendations.

Linking Farms with Colleges: A Guide to Understanding Farm-to-College Programs for Farmers, Food Service, and Organizers
(2005, Kristen Markley & Marion Kalb, Community Food Security Coalition.)
Free - download in PDF format [316K]
Details the benefits, challenges and strategies for success for building successful farm-to-college projects and includes case studies of innovative projects and an extensive resource list.

Linking Farms with Schools: A Guide to Understanding Farm-to-School Programs for Schools, Farmers and Organizers
(2004, Marion Kalb, Kristen Markley & Sara Tedeschi, Community Food Security Coalition.)
$10 plus shipping; order online
Details the benefits, challenges and strategies for success for building successful farm-to-school projects and includes case studies of innovative projects and an extensive resource list.

National Farm-to-College Research Report
(2002, Kristen Markley, Community Food Security Coaltion)
Report from earlier research conducted by the Community Food Security Coalition on farm-to-college programs, including an introduction to the programs, information on how they are started and operated, and recommendations for those interested in beginning their own programs.

Nuevos Mercados Para Su Cosecha (New Ways to Sell What You Grow)
(2007, Community Food Security Coalition and the National Center for Appropriate Technology.)
Free - download the publication in PDF format [1M] or contact NCAT at (800) ASK-NCAT for a printed copy.
Free - download the audio recording (mp3) of this publication
This Spanish-language publication details strategies for farmers interested in marketing their products to local institutions such as schools, colleges, hospitals, retirement homes and day care centers. Included is a resource list of organizations around the country that work with Latino farmers looking for ways to market their products. Description of this publication and other resources in Spanish | Descripción de esta publicación y otros recursos en Español

Other publications

A Guide to Serving Local Food on Your Menu [PDF, 684K]
(2007, Glynwood Center)
The Guide is a primer to help foodservice managers and directors, caterers, chefs, restaurateurs and others consider creative ways to incorporate local food products into almost any foodservice setting. Chefs, institutional purchasing agents and others share their experience in short case studies within the 32-page Guide. Topics include where to begin, identifying sources of supply, developing relationships with farmers, working through existing distributors, and things to consider about the regional food system.

Behavioral Economic Concepts To Encourage Healthy Eating in School Cafeterias: Experiments and Lessons From College Students [PDF, 864K]
(2008, David R. Just, Brian Wansink, Lisa Mancino, and Joanne Guthrie, USDA Economic Research Service)
Changing small factors that influence consumer choice may lead to healthier eating within controlled settings, such as school cafeterias. This report describes a behavioral experiment in a college cafeteria to assess the effects of various payment options and menu selection methods on food choices.

Bringing Local Food to Local People: A Resource Guide for Farm-to-School and Farm-to-Institution Programs [PDF, 560K]
(2003, Barbara C. Bellows, Rex Dufour & Janet Bachmann, ATTRA)
An introduction to farm-to-cafeteria programs, with an extensive list of resources and contacts for those interested in starting programs.

Building Local Food Programs On College Campus: Tips for Dining Administrators, Family Farmers & Student Advocates [PDF, 7.2M]
(2008, Community Alliance with Family Farmers)
This guide provides tangible guidance on how to conceptualize, structure, and implement food programs that support local family farmers.

Buy Local Food and Farm Toolkit: A Guide for Student Organizers [PDF, 420K]
(2002, Oxfam America)
A resource aimed primarily at students interested in starting farm-to-college programs, including an outline of a step-by-step process for getting a program off the ground.

CIAS Research Brief #39 on New Markets for Producers: Selling to Colleges
(1999, University of Wisconsin-Madison Center for Integrated Agricultural Systems)
Summary of research that identified opportunities and barriers faced by producers that sell products to six different U.S. colleges with significant local, sustainable food buying components.

CIAS Research Brief #55 on Dishing up local food on Wisconsin campuses
(2001, University of Wisconsin-Madison Center for Integrated Agricultural Systems)
A report on farm-to-college programs at several Wisconsin college campuses, including some of the early lessons learned from programs such as the University of Wisconsin-Madison's.

College Farm Guide from The New Farm
The New Farm has a resource listing student organic farms, along with contact information.

Farm-to-Cafeteria Connections Handbook [PDF, 2.9MB]
(2004, Kelli Sanger & Leslie Zenz, Washington State Department of Agriculture)
An extensive resource guide for those interested in starting farm-to-cafeteria programs at all levels, with information for food services, farmers and others. Includes case studies of programs and a list of resources.

Humane Purchasing Guide
(Contact Josh Balk at the Humane Society of the United States at 301-721-6419 or )
Strategies for planning and implementing more humane food purchasing.

Local Food Connections: Food Service Considerations [PDF, 160K]
(Iowa State University Extension)
A short publication from Iowa State University Extension aimed specifically at food services professionals, with information on how they can start purchasing local products and a list of available resources.

Local Food Connections: From Farms to Schools [PDF, 80K]
(Iowa State University Extension)
A short publication from Iowa State University Extension aimed primarily at farmers. Provides an overview of some of the challenges in marketing directly to schools, recommends marketing strategies and provides a resource list for further information.

Local Food Event Tool Kit
(Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture)
Resources for putting on a special local foods event, such as a lunch or dinner in campus cafeterias.

Multimedia Presentation--The Benefits of Local Food
(Spring 2005, Middlebury College Environmental Studies Senior Seminar)
A video presentation geared toward college students, presenting economic analyses, and a visul portrayal of the benefits of local foods.

Selling to Institutions: An Iowa Farmer's Guide [PDF, 206K]
(2003, Robert Luedeman & Neil D. Hamilton; download for free from the Iowa Food Policy Council)
Issues to consider when selling to institutions, including products, equipment, insurance and other requirements, and government assistance.

Something to Cheer About: National Trends and Prospects for Sustainable Agriculture Products in Food Service Operations of Colleges and Universities [PDF, 102K]
(1998, Douglas B. Johnson & George W. Stevenson, University of Wisconsin-Madison Center for Integrated Agricultural Systems)
A survey of farm-to-college programs operating in 1998 and comparison of their characteristics.

Supplying Local Food to Educational Institutions: A How-To Manual for Use by Educational Institutions, Farmers, and Advocacy Groups
(Community Involved in Sustaining Agriculture [CISA], 1 Sugarloaf Street, S. Deerfield, MA 01373; tel: 413-665-7100; fax: 413-665-7101; toll free: 866-965-7100; e-mail: cisa@buylocalfood.com; $8 + $2 shipping)
Examines the barriers to institutional sales and outlines seven strategies to overcome the barriers. Based on actual experience with a private college, Hampshire College in Amherst, MA, and the Deerfield Elementary School, South Deerfield, MA. References included along with outline for a local food event (including a budget).

Sustainable Food Policy Research:
(http://www.foodalliance.org/sustainablefoodpolicy/index.html (2007, Food Alliance)
Research conducted on institutional food purchasing policies that address a range of social and environmental concerns.

USDA Agricultural Marketing Service's information on "Good Agricultural Practices" and/or "Good Handling Practices"
http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/ams.fetchTemplateData.do?template=TemplateN&page=GAPGHPAuditVerificationProgram
On this page there is an audit checklist, a program brochure and an audit score sheet.

Student research

Bringing Sustainable Food into Youth Outdoor Education
(2006, Jennifer E. Farley, University of Idaho)
Master's thesis evaluating the potential barriers, opportunities, and benefits for developing a farm-to-school program at the UI McCall Field Campus. In addition, analyses of both the UI McCall Field Campus and McCall area food systems (specifically production and distribution) were conducted to provide the context for implementing local food initiatives and research in the McCall area and UI McCall Field Campus.

Feasability Study of Farm to College program at University of Cincinnati [PDF, 88KB]
(2007, Frindee Daly, University of Cincinnati)
The intent of this Master's thesis was to determine the feasibility of implementing a farm-to-college program at the University of Cincinnati's main campus dining facilities. The results of the study showed that the current food service operation and logistical structure could support a farm-to-college program as long as the contracted food service company could find a local food distributor that offers competitive prices, meets food safety regulations, supply the high quantity of product demand, and provide reliable delivery of goods.

The Taste of Green: Corporate Integration of Bioregional Foodstuffs in College and University Foodservices [PDF, 864KB]
(2006, Jessica Beckett, Sarah Lawrence College)
Over the last five years a trend of integrating bioregional food has arisen on college and university campuses in the United States. These 'Farm to College' programs originate in the doctrines of the alternative food movements of the sixties and seventies. This trend parallels the growing public interest in alternative foods that has grown since the USDA began labeling organic items in 2002. Large foodservice companies (including Compass, Bon Appetit, Chartwells, Sodexho, Aramark, and Parkhurst Dining) operate over 65% of these farm to college programs. As these corporations currently operate within the larger industrial food complex, their abrupt enthusiasm for these programs prompts a question of their motives. This paper is an in-depth analysis of the integrity of corporate run Farm to College programs through a historical look at the evolution of the industrial food system, alternative food movements, and corporate green wash.

Selling Local: The Application of Social Marketing Theory to Institutional Buying Programs [PDF, 356K]
(2005, Douglas Hannah, Dartmouth College)
Senior thesis researching how to increase college student demand for local foods. Includes comprehensive case studies of six of the nine New England farm to college programs included in the study.

A Survey of Farm-to-College Programs: History, Characteristics and Student Involvement [PDF, 900K]
(2005, Sarah Murray, University of Washington/Community Food Security Coalition)
Master’s thesis examining farm-to-college programs, with an emphasis on those at large public universities and on student involvement with programs, along with a discussion of how programs could become institutionalized. Includes case studies for five large public universities with farm-to-college programs, references, and survey and interview questions.

A Strategy for Community Economic Development: Increasing Purchasing of Washington Agricultural Products by Washington Institutions [PDF, 1MB]
(2006, Erin Schau, University of Washington)
Master's thesis examining strategies for increasing purchasing of Washington agricultural products by Washington institutions as a way of improving regional markets for the products.

Web sites

Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education

The College Sustainability Report Card - provides in-depth sustainability profiles for hundreds of colleges in all 50 U.S. States and Canada

Community Food Security Coalition

FoodRoutes farm-to-college page

Food Security Learning Center farm-to-cafeteria page

National Association of College and University Food Services

National Campaign for Sustainable Agriculture

National Farm to School home page

Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture (PASA)

Real Food Challenge - works with student movements across the country

Sustainable Foodservice Consulting - offers free information and tools to help businesses implement sustainable practices.

Sustainable Table

The Campus Kitchens Project

University of Northern Iowa Center for Energy and Environmental Education's Local Food Project

University of Wisconsin-Madison Center for Integrated Agricultural Systems

Washington State Department of Agriculture Small Farm and Direct Marketing Program

Listservs

Farm-To-Cafeteria Listserv

To log on to the Farm to School/Farm to College Yahoo! Groups email list,
Go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/cfsc-schoolfood
You can read the archives, or to join, click on "Join this Group" in the top right corner, and follow the directions from there!

Education For Sustainability West’s Food & Dining Services Working Group Listserv

A discussion list to help food service providers, clients and customers based in the western U.S. and Canada share:

Strategies for bringing local and sustainable products into the dining hall
Current events and examples of successful programs.
Institutional purchasing guidelines and policy statements.
Opportunities for financial and technical assistance.Announcements of relevant workshops, trainings and conferences.

To subscribe: send a blank e-mail to efs-food-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

Send questions about the Food & Dining Services Working Group to Matthew Buck, Working Group Chair ()

Address questions about EFS West (Education for Sustainability Western Network) to Judy Walton, EFS West Executive Director ()

Curricular resources on gardening, cooking, nutrition and the food system

Agriculture in the Classroom
Links to state-specific programs and resources.

Teaching Organic Farming & Gardening: Resources for Instructors
(Center for Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems, University of California, Santa Cruz)
This 600-page manual covers practical aspects of organic farming and gardening, applied soil science, and social and environmental issues in agriculture. It is available for $45 from the Center, or can be downloaded.

Information on farmer-owned/managed cooperatives

Keystone Development Center
Kate Smith, Executive Director
1238 South Garner St, State College, PA 16801
Phone: 215.292.1461
Fax: 814.238.5059
Email:

Mid-Atlantic Guide to Cooperative Development Resources
A comprehensive guide to setting up a cooperative and finding help with various aspects of the process.

USDA Rural Development: Business and Cooperative Programs
Information on publications and grants for rural businesses and cooperatives.

Innovative Marketing Opportunities for Small Farmers: Local Schools as Customers
(Dan Schofer, available at http://www.ams.usda.gov/tmd/mta/publications.htm)
A series of bulletins using the example of a farmer-managed cooperative in northern Florida to detail the development of a cooperative structure, includes more resources on cooperatives

Federation of Southern Cooperatives
An organization in the Southeast United States that has as its primary objectives the retention of black owned land and the use of cooperatives for land-based economic development

New North Florida Cooperative
The goal of the cooperative is to provide marketing services to the participating farmers, collectively sell produce to markets such as local school districts, and ultimately to increase the amount of product being sold, thereby increasing the farmers’ income

Resources for locating local farm products

How to locate farmers or farmer organizations

Contact your local county cooperative extension office; find a list at http://www.csrees.usda.gov/Extension/index.html.

Go to your state department of agriculture and search for vegetable, fruit, dairy, or beef cattlemen associations to find medium scale family farmers in your state that may be more likely to have the volume needed to sell to institutions than a small family farmer

Or search for specific trade associations: for example,

Directory of Fresh Produce Trade Associations:
http://www.bluebookprco.com/common/links_trade.asp

Produce Industry Website Directory of Associations & Organizations
http://www.blueskysearch.com/Assoc.htm

Directory of State Cattlemen’s Associations:
http://www.mycattle.com/people/associations/stateassoc.cfm#anchorM

ATTRA (the National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service) has assembled an online database of local food directories, useful for producers and consumers alike. The database includes national, regional, state and community directory resources for all 50 states, searchable by state.

Eat Wild is a source for safe, healthy, natural and nutritious grass-fed beef, lamb, goats, bison, poultry and dairy products.

FoodRoutes provides resources for finding local food sources and the Eat Well Guide is another directory for finding farmers in your region.

Local Harvest provides lists of farmers markets, CSAs, farms and other local food sources.

USDA’s Alternative Farming Systems Information Center

Networks or distributors that work with local farm products

In order for a farm to institution project to work, there generally needs to be a distribution infrastructure that brings together farmers and institutions. Institutional food service operations typically purchase large volumes of product at one time and usually purchase from only a handful of distributors. Because of the magnitude of these food service operations, they generally need product to be reliable and consistent in terms of volume, quality, frequency of deliveries, and packing specifications. Working with an existing distribution infrastructure or creating a new one can help to provide an organized channel for getting products from multiple farms into a large-scale institutional food service operation.

This distribution infrastructure can take many forms including a farmer-managed cooperative, a non-profit organization that manages a farmer network, or a distributor. A farmer managed cooperative or network will have a fair amount of control in guaranteeing that farmers using sustainable agriculture practices are being supported in a fair and equitable manner.

In the case of a private distributor, it is important to consider institutionalizing methods for supporting the farms that the project wants to support and supporting these farms in a fair and equitable manner. When developing your local food program keep in mind that terms like local, small, or sustainable can have different meanings to different people. Discuss and agree upon the types of farms the project intends to support.

To assure that the distribution firm you work with or the program you develop supports local, sustainable farms in a fair and equitable manner, consider adopting one or more of these practices:

Include specific details on what products from which farms are allowed and request a system for how this will be tracked in the contract with the distributor. Request that a minimum percentage of the food provided by the distribution firm will be sourced locally. Write this into the contract.
Create a sticker with the distributor for farmers to use on their boxes so that when their product arrives at the institution there is evidence of where the product came from and when it was picked.
Include in the food purchasing policy of the institution (see Food Alliance's work on this) and the contract with the distributor a requirement to only purchase products with certain labels.

Examples of existing label programs include: USDA Organic Certified; American Humane Free Farmed Certified; Food Alliance Certified (www.foodalliance.org/certification) to verify that products are organic, humane, or sustainable; a label such as 'grass fed' or 'rBST free' or similar labels that don't require a specific certification to validate; or Marine Stewardship Council certification for sustainable seafood. Keep in mind that there must be enough of these products available locally for the institution and distributor to be able to follow through with the commitment, so research ahead of time will be critical. Look for the Real Food Calculator coming soon on the Real Food Challenge website, www.realfoodchallenge.org.

Work with Buy Fresh, Buy Local chapters in your region to develop standards for local and sustainable and ways to monitor these standards. See Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project's program on this.

For items that you cannot procure locally consider using Food Alliance certified products, Protected Harvest certified products and fair traded products.
Develop an evaluation system for measuring the success of the farm to institution project from the viewpoint of the farmers involved (i.e. price, satisfaction with relationships, etc). Go to the Community Food Security Coalition's Evaluation Program page for ideas related to this.
Communicate with farmers on a regular basis to assess their experience. Maintain a close relationship with farmers even if you are working through a distributor; this may be your best assurance in knowing whether your institution is supporting the farms you want them to support and in a fair and profitable manner.
Communicate with your distributor on a regular basis: raise their awareness of this issue. See the List of Potential Questions to Ask Distributors (Word doc), developed by Roberta Anderson of Food Alliance. If institutions can ask distributors more sophisticated questions they can help increase distributors' understanding of these issues and possibly influence purchasing decisions based on these issues.

The following list of networks, organizations, and distributors have been identified as helping to build connections between farms and local institutions or other markets:

Service Area: National

Association of Family Farms
3880 Rodman Street, NW
Suite C213
Washington, DC 20016-2824
Phone: 202.997.1112
Email:

The Food Alliance
Northwest office and national headquarters
1829 NE Alberta, # 5
Portland, OR 97211
Phone: 503.493.1066
Fax: 503.493.1069
E-mail:

Organic Valley/Organic Prairie
One Organic Way
LaFarge, WI 54639
Phone: 888.444.6455
Ext. #3444-Consumer Relations Dept.

Protected Harvest
1211 Brunswick Court
Arnold, MD 21012
Phone: 410.757.4234
Fax: 410.626.7732
E-mail:

Service Area: Northeast, OH, WV, and MD

Black River Produce
PO Box 489
North Springfield, VT 05150
Phone: 800.228.5481
Email:
Service area: VT, NH, MA, NY

Dole and Bailey
16 Conn Street
Woburn, MA 01801
Phone: 888.777.2648
Fax: 781.935.9085
E-mail:
Service area: New England

Maine Foods Network
Service area: Maine

Northern Tier Sustainable Meats
Grantville Summit, PA 16926
Phone: 570-364-5212
E-mail:

Paragon-Monteverde
Joel Ankney
55–36th Street
Pittsburgh, PA 15201
Phone: 412.621.2626
1.800.934.6495
Fax: 412.621.2829
E-mail:
Service area: western PA and neighboring areas in Ohio, WV, and MD

Southeastern Massachusetts Agricultural Partnership (SEMAP)
One State Bog Road, P.O. Box 569
East Wareham, MA 02538
Phone: 508.295.2212 x50
Email:
Service Area: Southeastern Massachusetts

Service Area: Midwest

Home Grown Wisconsin
Suzanne Rubinstein
General Manager
P.O. Box 6171
Madison, WI 53716
Phone: 608.341.8939
E-mail:

Service Area: West

California Certified Organic Farmers
1115 Mission Street
Santa Cruz, CA 95060
Phone: 831.423.2263
Email:
Service area: California

Growers Collaborative
1141 Cummings Road
Santa Paula, CA 93060
Phone: 805.933.1024
Service area: California

Ripple Riley Thomas
2559 Grosse Ave.
Santa Rosa, CA 95404
Phone: 707.569.7377
Service area: California

Veritable Vegetable
1100 Cesar Chavez Street
Santa Francisco, CA 94124
Phone: 415.641.3500
Fax: 415.641.3505
Service area: California

Service Area: South

Grayson Natural Foods, LLC
Gary Mitchell, Managing Partner
Phone: 276.773.3712 or 276.768.8768
Service area: SW Virginia & NW North Carolina and would consider other distribution areas

Sustainable Food Center
1106 Clayton Lane, Suite 480W
Austin, TX 78723
Phone: 512.236.0074
Fax: 512.236.0098
Email:
Service area: Austin, Central Texas

Service Area: Canada

Local Flavour Plus
1965 Queen Street East, Suite 2
Toronto, Ontario M4L 1H9
Phone: 416.699.6070
Email:
Service area: Canada