Irradiated foods

Farm-to-Cafeteria school campaign

Find out how to get local, farm-fresh produce into your school cafeteria. Other parents and schools have done it. You can, too.

Here are some good resources:

Sound Consumer, February 2004, Insights by Goldie tells how one parent near Olympia, Washington got her local schools to start an organic salad bar.

Download these articles from the Washington State Department of Agriculture:

• Farm-to-Cafeteria Connections Handbook — Published by the Washington State Department of Agriculture, this resource provides locally relevant how-to information and case studies of successful projects across the country. Hard copies are available free of charge. Contact smallfarms@agr.wa.gov or call 360-902-1884 to speak with the program manager, Leslie Zenz, or program coordinator, Kelli Sanger.
• A Salad Bar Featuring Organic Choices: Revitalizing the School Lunch Program — Written April 2003. An in-depth look at the Olympia school district lunch program, which features an "Organic Choices Salad Bar" and buys direct from local farmers. Explains how the farm-to-cafeteria program started and how the district changed the school lunch offering while keeping the program financially stable.