School districts across New York state may soon have an easier time purchasing locally sourced menu ingredients, reports the Watertown Daily Times.
A bill signed into law last week will enable school districts to work more directly with farmers, the Daily Times reports. As long as products are under a certain cost threshold, a district may purchase them directly from a farmers’ association without first getting approval from New York’s education commissioner.
Such permission was previously required if a district was looking to purchase certain items through an association with more than 10 farmers or producers, the Daily Times says.
In addition, some schools will receive additional school lunch reimbursement for expanding their inclusion of local items.
“The menus can be planned around what’s available and what’s fresh,” Jon Greenwood, president of the St. Lawrence County Farm Bureau, told the Daily Times. “It’s going to take coordination on both ends that hopefully results in fresher, locally grown food products in schools.”
Local sourcing has been top of mind for many schools across New York; earlier this year, more than 130 schools in the state committed to purchasing more local produce as part of a USDA pilot program.
Read the full story via the Watertown Daily Times.