A K-12 district takes farm-to-school to the next level
Four years ago, Minneapolis Public Schools made a commitment to move away from prepackaged heat-and-serve meals to a cooked-from-scratch program using local products. Since then, the 35,000-student district has partnered with select Minnesota and Wisconsin farms, employed a farm-to-school coordinator, grown its foodservice staff from 100 to 270 and is overhauling its central commissary kitchen to carry out its mission.
The district’s executive chef, Mark Augustine, shared how he and his Culinary & Nutrition Services Department are making farm-to-school a win-win for students, farmers, the community and MPS foodservice operations—and what’s in store for the future.
Put it in writing
At the beginning of this school year, the district contracted with 16 small to midsize farms within a 100-mile radius of Minneapolis. Each is committed to provide a set quantity of a specific fruit or vegetable for the farm-to-school program. One partner may grow cauliflower, another kohlrabi and another carrots, for a total of 27 different crops. To supplement the supply, MPS also sources “local” products from farmers within 200 miles, says Augustine, who often works with the Hmong American Farmers Association and Wozupi Tribal Gardens, two minority-run co-ops in the area.
Be serious about food safety
Before a farmer comes on board, MPS culinary and nutrition staff, the district’s produce vendor and University of Minnesota food safety experts make on-site visits to each farm to observe its agricultural practices. Ongoing food safety guidance and training is available once the farmers are contracted, in conjunction with the University of Minnesota.
Get to know the farmers
To engage students in the program, farm-to-school coordinator Kate Seybold created trading cards for each of the 16 contracted farms. Each card displays a photo of the farmer, the farm’s location, the vegetables grown and fun facts. These are distributed to students and promoted leading up to meals featuring a specific farmer’s produce. The cards have turned into a hot commodity among younger students, who trade with friends and try to collect them all.
Hold tastings
To expose kids to new flavors and ingredients, Seybold organizes True Food Taste Tests several times a year. This month, K-8 students are sampling manoomin salad, a Native American dish made with Minnesota-grown wild rice and local, seasonal produce. The tastings are supported with in-school posters, a newsletter to parents and mini lesson plans for English and Social Studies classes.
Stage a cooking competition
The True Food Chef Council teams up with middle school students from around the district for a Junior Iron Chef Competition, organized by MPS Culinary & Nutrition Services and emceed by a popular news anchor. Farm-to-school produce is required for each recipe. The winning dish—judged by a star-studded panel including a U.S. Congressman, Commissioner of Education and local media—is featured on the school lunch menu.
Dedicate a day to all-local
At every meal, the district incorporates as many local ingredients as possible, but the department created Minnesota Thursdays to highlight the bounty from the state, bring attention to the farm-to-school program and support the local economy. An all-local lunch, which includes fruits and vegetables as well as meat or poultry and baked goods, is served on the first Thursday of every month.
Get equipped for savings
Right now, the MPS farm-to-school program requires the farmers to deliver their crops to a produce vendor, who then cuts squash into cubes, separates broccoli into florets, etc. But the district has made a sizable investment in its central commissary kitchen, equipping it with its own vegetable processing machine. The plan is to eventually prep all vegetables on-site and deliver them to the individual schools—a move that will save the cost of third-party processing, says Augustine. Another new addition—a piece of equipment that packages the district’s made-from-scratch salad dressing into individual cups.
