Local Food for Public Institutions

Practical Solution

The “How To”

The first step of implementing a local farm program would be to start a conversation with the key stakeholders and decision makers. Administrators, patients, students, staff, and food purchasers are all people to promote healthy food options to. Next is to develop a policy that addresses the types of foods to be included in the farm program. Contact your institution's existing suppliers and food distributors, expressing preferences for healthy and locally grown foods.

Farm to School Network connects local and regional farm systems to schools (K-12), with the objectives of 1) serving healthy meals in school meal programs, 2) improvement of student nutrition, 3) providing opportunities for agriculture, and 4) educating students on health, nutrition, and agriculture.

Farm to Hospital programs allow local farmers to distribute food products directly to hospitals. Farm to Hospital program elements include not only purchase of locally grown products, but also hosting farmers’ markets, marketing community supported agriculture, and creating hospital gardens.

Planning & Zoning

Institutions may develop a food purchasing policy that gives preference to locally grown fruits and vegetables not exposed to herbicides and pesticides, meat produced without the use of non-therapeutic antibiotics, or naturally fed beef.