Hello Farm to Fork Friends!
October is National Farm to School Month! Join us and thousands of schools, early care and education sites, farms, communities and organizations across the country as we celebrate food education, school gardens and lunch trays filled with healthy, local ingredients.
Please share your celebrations with us by tagging @utfarm2fork and use the hashtags #farmtoschool #farmtoschoolmonth and #UTapplecrunch.
Are you hosting an event for Apple Crunch Day? Don’t forget to register your organization to count towards our goal of 200,000 participants!
What to Harvest This Month
Your zucchini plants should be calling it quits for the fall, and you may begin harvesting your winter squash. If your squash isn’t ready to harvest yet, be prepared with blankets or frost cloth to protect them from the cold. When you do harvest, try out these kid friendly ways to serve up Butternut Squash!
Looking to stay up to date on other speciality crops in Utah? Check out Utah Public Radio's Cropping Up podcasts, featuring short episodes highlighting specialty crops and the role they play in bringing access to fresh food across Utah.
Get Involved!
Harvest Gratitude Day
November 16, 2023 (Time TBD)
Utah Farm to Fork is excited to celebrate Harvest Gratitude Day in honor of the hard-working farmers and ranchers who provide food for our tables. Join the Utah Department of Agriculture (UDAF) and the Utah State Board of Education (USBE) for an interactive, online learning experience for middle and high school students to learn about the importance of agriculture and where their food comes from. More details to come. Register your group today!
New resources now available on the Utah Farm to Fork website!
Local Beef and Bison Cafeteria Posters- Let your school and visitors know that you are participating in the Local Food for Schools Cooperative Agreement! Custom posters are available to showcase the exact ranch providing for your district. Click here to download!
Dairy West Posters - We are excited to announce our latest partnership with Dairy West to create cafeteria posters that showcase to students where dairy, vegetables, protein, grains and fruit are produced in Utah. Visit the Dairy West website to download today!
Just passed! The USDA has implemented proposed changes to the The Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) allowing millions of more students to access free school meals. Previously, schools qualified for CEP if at least 40% of students identify as low-income. Now, the threshold has been lowered t0 25%, opening doors for 9 million more students to access nutritious school meals. Learn more about the program.
Resources & Trainings
National Farm to School Network - 2023 Movement Meeting
October 26, 2023, 1:00 - 3:00 PM MT
National Farm to School Network's 2023 Movement Meeting is officially scheduled for October 26! This is a FREE event taking place virtually on Zoom. Movement Meetings are a space for farm to school and farm to early care and education advocates to gather to celebrate, connect, inspire, and grow together. Register here now.
Farm to School Coordinators Community of Practice
The Farm to School CoP is a two-year collaborative space for eight farm to school coordinators where members will engage in peer-learning and co-develop strategies to navigate farm to school implementation and bring learnings back to their work. Learn more about the requirements and apply today!
Food Justice
The New Roots program is an essential effort by the International Rescue Committee (IRC), provide support for refugees to celebrate their heritage and nourish themselves and their neighbors by planting strong roots—literally—in their new communities.
Support their efforts by visiting their last few farmers markets for the season or shopping with their wholesale partners.
Job Opportunities
Utah State University has multiple openings for Create Better Health Ambassadors to provide nutrition education to low income families. Visit the USU Job Board and search “Create Better Health” to find an opportunity near you!
Do you have a farm to fork job opportunity you'd like us to share? Let us know! Jobs must be located in Utah or fully remote. Do you have a farm to fork job opportunity you'd like us to share? Let us know! Jobs must be located in Utah or fully remote.
Funding Opportunities
Utah Agriculture in the Classroom (AITC) is awarding ten $500 awards to Utah pre-kindergarten through 12th grade core education teachers (currently teaching) whose innovative classroom projects use agricultural concepts to teach reading, writing, math, healthy lifestyles, science, or social studies. The deadline for award applications is October 6, 2023 at midnight. Apply today!
Green Our Planet is now accepting applications for their GardenConnect and HydroConnect programming, training teachers to use school gardens and hydroponics laboratories to teach students STEM, conservation, nutrition and entrepreneurship in a hands-on engaging way. This grant opportunity is open to public, private, and charter schools. Applications are due November 7, 2023.
Be sure to share your upcoming events, grant opportunities, and jobs with us so that we can share them here!
P.S. Did you know you can download cafeteria signs like these from our website? Visit www.utfarmtofork.org/marketing to check them out.