The U.S. Department of Agriculture is resurrecting a program that brought millions of dollars to Oregon nonprofits, Tribes and school districts. But schools are still starting the academic year with less federal support for programs that used to bring fresh local foods to cafeterias.
FILE - The cafeteria at David Douglas High School in Portland on September 6, 2023.
Caden Perry / OPB
USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins announced last week that the agency is making the largest single-year investment in a popular farm-to-school program that supports projects like K-12 nutrition education, school gardens and local food purchases.
Rollins said the program aligns with the Make America Healthy Again roadmap to improve children’s health. That roadmap has been criticized by some researchers and nutrition advocates for lacking concrete details.
“These grants will open new doors for small family farms, expand access to healthy food in schools, and inspire the next generation of Great American Farmers,” Rollins said in a statement.
A press release failed to mention the agency had cancelled that very program earlier this year, however. While advocates say they are happy to see the program back, they say it doesn’t make up for funding cuts that would have brought more locally grown, fresh foods to schools.
The Patrick Leahy Farm to School Grant Program is one of the only federal programs that exclusively funds farm-to-school projects. Since 2013, Oregon schools, state agencies and nonprofits have received $3.6 million for several projects focused on healthy food.
But earlier this year, the Trump administration abruptly froze the program.
“It was an extremely stressful and challenging time,” said Melina Barker, the director of the Oregon Farm to School Network. “Not only was it a huge blow that the program was canceled, but a lot of people had already taken time to craft their proposals and then those were not reviewed or awarded.”
Oregon was also set to receive $6 million for another program, the Local Foods for Schools program, meant to help schools purchase locally grown produce from farms. But in March, the USDA terminated that program as part of a $1 billion agency-wide budget cut.
“That was a huge blow,” said Melina Barker, the director of the Oregon Farm to School Network. “Food is expensive, occasionally local food is more expensive, … so having that extra money for schools was crucial in schools being able to really expand their local fresh unprocessed purchasing.”
The Patrick Leahy Farm to School grant funding cap will be much larger than in previous years, with $18 million available nationwide, but there are some changes to the application process.
The dollar amount each group can receive is also much bigger compared to previous years — it’s now capped at $500,000. But Barker said groups are still trying to get more clarity on other changes.
Barker said she is thrilled to see the program continue, but it only goes so far.
“We knew it would come back in some form. I’m thrilled that it’s come back above that [funding] threshold and that they’ve increased the maximum award that people can apply for,” she said. “But there’s a suite of funding from the USDA that we are still missing in the farm to school and local food community for sure.”
