Center for Good Food Purchasing

During #FarmtoSchoolMonth, it's important to remember that at the center of farm-to-school programs are both farmers *and* school food workers. To expand farm-to-school initiatives, we must in tandem also expand training programs — like the Chef Ann Foundation’s Healthy School Food Pathway — for school food staff. Since 2020, and thanks to the First Partner of California Jennifer Siebel Newsom's vision for school food change, California has invested more than $100 million in the California Farm to School initiative. We recently hosted a panel discussion at Front Porch Farm, which supplies food to Healdsburg School District in California, to explore how supporting the school food workforce is foundational to successful farm-to-school initiatives. At this event, we were also excited to highlight Waverley Street Foundation's new investment in Chef Ann Foundation’s work. This support will expand two of our existing programs—Get Schools Cooking and Healthy School Food Pathway Fellowship—as well as launch a new values-aligned procurement initiative to help schools source more local and climate-smart ingredients from food producers. Ultimately, for schools to source more local products, school food staff need to have the knowledge, skills, and resources to work with whole ingredients and cook meals from scratch. This #FarmtoSchoolMonth, we’re looking forward to continuing to scale our school food workforce development programs and to exploring new ways to help schools procure more values-aligned, climate-smart ingredients. Priya David Clemens Nicholas Anicich Randal "RJ" Lane Nick Dramis Leigh Ann Bozung Muhamed Yasin Dace Krilova Kelsey P. Kat Soltanmorad, RDN Mt. Diablo Unified School District Santa Clara Unified School District Marysville Joint Unified School District Napa Valley Unified School District West Contra Costa Unified School District Calistoga Joint Unified School Tahoe Truckee Unified School District Live Oak School District HEALDSBURG UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT Petaluma City Schools barbara jellison Karen Luna Brian Dufour, NDTR, MPH

🎉 We are excited to celebrate the U.S. Department of Agriculture's investment of $1.7 billion to support access to locally and regionally produced foods! Building on the USDA's Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement Program (LFPA) and Local Food for Schools Cooperative Agreement Program (LFS), this continued investment in resilient food systems connects children and families to locally produced, healthy foods served in schools, child care facilities, food banks, and other vital community institutions. Read more via USDA ➡ https://lnkd.in/e7q8sgtN

⏰ REMINDER: Our webinar on the impact and potential of quality school food jobs is this Thursday, Oct. 3! Register to attend ➡ bit.ly/LunchLineWebinar24

❗Don't miss our webinar on Thursday, October 3, where Paula Daniels, Mara Fleishman, and Dr. Jennifer Gaddis will dive into a range of issues related to quality jobs and good food in schools. ✅ Register to attend: bit.ly/LunchLineWebinar24

📢 PAID INTERNSHIP OPPORTUNITY! 📢 The Center for Good Food Purchasing is seeking a part-time Data Cleaning Assistant for a 16-week opportunity working closely with our Assessment & Analytics team, remotely or from our office in Berkeley, CA. Applications will be accepted via https://lnkd.in/eKwhSWsr through Friday, Oct. 11. For more information ➡ https://lnkd.in/edygYCTY

I will be representing the Center for Good Food Purchasing at the NYS Farm to School Summit in November! Looking forward to seeing familiar faces and meeting new friends in a couple of months. Registration is open now: https://lnkd.in/gRsu4DAa

On September 25, we are thrilled to host Paula Daniels, Co-Founder and Chief, What's Next, and Founding Chair, Center for Good Food Purchasing during our first virtual roundtable on growing resilient food systems. Save your seat here: bit.ly/3XraYS1 At the center of Paula’s work is a cutting-edge procurement-based strategy to shift U.S. food and agriculture systems toward the public values of wellbeing for people and our planet. Paula drove forward an idea to create a market-based incentive, using the purchasing prowess of large urban institutions to send value-based market signals through the food system, at scale. She started this work as a program of the Los Angeles Food Policy Council and it has since spun off into the Center for Good Food Purchasing, allowing for national adoption. Read more about Paula’s current work in a recent report by Center for Good Food Purchasing: https://lnkd.in/gxK25sdf

Join Fair Food Network as we kick off our new virtual roundtable series inviting changemakers from across the food system to share their stories about how food is shaping a more resilient future for their community. RSVP: bit.ly/3XraYS1 On September 25, Paula Daniels shares her work at Center for Good Food Purchasing and Alicia Higa will describe how her integrated health center has become one of the top purchasers of locally grown fruits and vegetables on O’ahu – part of ongoing efforts to grow community wellness and resilience over the past few years. Please share this event with your friends and colleagues who are interested in growing an equitable, resilient food economy.

A newly released analysis of local food spending in New England from the New England Food System Planners Partnership highlights a critical area and opportunity for growth and investment. The Regional Food Count 2022 report reveals that $2.28 billion or 3.1 percent of New England's total $120.6 billion in food, beverage, and alcohol expenditures were directed towards local and regional products. As Leah Rovner of the New England Food System Planners Partnership writes, "The single best way we can make a difference now is to choose local and regional food items over those from far away." The potential impact of choosing to increase food localization is explored in "Greater Good: The Economic Case for More Local, Resilient, and Equitable Food Systems," our report highlighting the critical role of regionalized food systems in fostering economic growth, creating good quality jobs, and generating revenues. An analysis of the economic footprint of food systems in six diverse regions across the United States presents an opportunity for a high return on investment through more localization -- not only economic output, local jobs, and tax revenues, but also social benefits such as resiliency, sustainability, and equity. // Read more on the "Greater Good" report here ➡ bit.ly/3UiMiL5 We're inspired to consider the opportunity highlighted in the Regional Food Count 2022 New England local food spending analysis in light of a greater effort of the New England Food Systems Planners Partnership to reach a regional goal of producing and consuming 30 percent of New England's food needs in the region by 2030. "This data will encourage the region to work more collaboratively towards the 30% by 2030 goal," said Ellen Kahler, Executive Director of Vermont Sustainable Jobs Fund, as reported by Rovner. "By equitably expanding our regional food system, we can strengthen New England's economy, be more climate resilient and food secure. It is going to take all of us working together – businesses, community groups, governmental agencies, and eaters – to reach this goal but we all have a role to play and we will be better off for it."

Sept. 25 at 3 PM ET: Join our new virtual roundtable exploring how food is an important lever for growing community health, wealth, and resiliency. Discover how resilient food systems are taking root nationwide and dive into the ongoing efforts in O’ahu, Hawaii to bolster resilience and momentum in their local food movement. Our guest speakers include Alicia Higa, Chief Health Equity Officer at Waianae Coast Comprehensive Health Center and Executive Director at ‘Elepaio Social Services; Paula Daniels, Founding Chair of the Center for Good Food Purchasing; and moderator Oran Hesterman, Founder and Resident Champion at Fair Food Network, who will discuss how food can help shape a more resilient future. Registration is free. RSVP and get ready to join a community who is growing a more resilient and equitable future through food: https://bit.ly/3XraYS1