Alabama Farm to School Program

Alabama Farm to School Program Promoting fresh and local foods, school gardens, and nutrition and agriculture education in Alabama schools. Dole’s home state of North Carolina. The U.S.

The origin of the nation’s Farm-to-School Program was 10 years ago when then First Lady Hillary Clinton and U.S. Senator Elizabeth Dole were touring a school cafeteria in Mrs. In the rear of the cafeteria, Mrs. Dole noticed several cases of fresh strawberries with a California grower’s label on the box. She asked if North Carolina grew strawberries, to which one of the workers replied, “Yes, ma’am

, we grow quite a few strawberries in North Carolina!”

Mrs. Clinton and Senator Dole suggested it made good sense for school cafeterias to buy local whenever possible. As a result, legislation was passed providing $50,000 to each state to encourage public schools to buy produce from local farmers. Today, that amount has grown to $2 million per state. Another note about Farm to School, at the time of the program’s inception, the U.S. Department of Agriculture reported that they were unable to provide transportation to bring produce from the farms to the schools. Department of Defense was tapped to fill the need. That is why this program is funded through the Defense Department. Here in Alabama, each public school student is provided farm fresh produce as it becomes available, including tomatoes, potatoes, sweet potatoes and satsuma oranges. One challenge we have in this state is that our growing season does not match up very well with the school calendar. To solve that problem, this is the first year when Alabama schools will be provided with flash frozen produce grown on Alabama farms. This process preserves fresh produce just minutes after it has been picked and washed. Tests conducted by Auburn University scientists verify that flash freezing retains the flavor and nutrition of fresh produce as if it were eaten right out of the garden.

🍑Happy National Peach Day! 🍑
08/27/2026

🍑Happy National Peach Day! 🍑

Are you ready for a ?! 🚜
08/26/2026

Are you ready for a ?! 🚜

🐄🥛 Bring the Farm to Your Classroom or Cafeteria!Want to give your students a fun, hands-on connection to dairy farming?...
08/25/2026

🐄🥛 Bring the Farm to Your Classroom or Cafeteria!

Want to give your students a fun, hands-on connection to dairy farming? Discover Dairy’s Adopt a Cow Program is a FREE, year-long experience that lets students follow a real calf’s journey through updates, photos, videos, educational resources, and virtual farm experiences!

Students can meet dairy farmers, tour a farm, ask questions, and learn more about where the milk served in their school meals comes from—all without needing to find room for a 1,500-pound classroom mascot! 🐄📚

With more than 1 million students impacted worldwide, this is a fun Farm to School resource that brings agriculture to life and helps students connect with the farmers behind their food.

📅 Sign up by September 1st to receive a mailed welcome packet!
✨ FREE to participate!
🌱 A great Farm to School educational resource!

Visit Discover Dairy Dairy to learn more and enroll: www.discoverdairy.com/adopt

08/24/2026

We’re proud to recognize Elmore County Schools as one of six cohort awardees highlighted for the USDA’s Harvest to Hallways initiative, which focuses on bringing real food to every cafeteria!

Through the Patrick Leahy Farm to School Grant, Elmore County Schools will establish a regional Farm to School Processing Hub designed to expand year-round access to Alabama-grown foods for child nutrition programs while helping address challenges like frequent deliveries and limited cold storage.

Thank you, Elmore County Schools, for leading the way in Farm to School and investing in a stronger local food system! What an incredible opportunity to make a lasting impact and help ensure Alabama students have access to fresh, local foods throughout the year. 🍎🥕🌽



https://www.usda.gov/harvest-to-hallways

We LOVE Farm to School and appreciate Aggie Nutrition -Albertville City Schools CNP and Joshua Jones for their partnersh...
08/24/2026

We LOVE Farm to School and appreciate Aggie Nutrition -Albertville City Schools CNP and Joshua Jones for their partnership! Eating local = Fresh choices! 🍉💙

🍉 Alabama Grown and student approved! ❤️

Our students enjoyed fresh, sweet Alabama Grown watermelons from Joshua Jones Farm! We love being able to serve locally grown foods while supporting the farmers in our own community.

🌱 Farm to School — real food, real local, real good!

A big THANK YOU to Joshua Jones Farm for helping us bring fresh Alabama-grown goodness to our students! 🍉❤️




This week's spotlight goes to Belinda Thomas of Joyful F.A.R.M.S. of Dale County. They focus on both farmer and agricu...
08/21/2026

This week's spotlight goes to Belinda Thomas of Joyful F.A.R.M.S. of Dale County. They focus on both farmer and agricultural development, youth engagement, and Farm to School support. They primarily use tunnel-house production to grow vegetables, with collard greens being their signature crop. You can catch them in this year's Annual Ozark Collard Green Festival in November! Thank you for your continued contributions to your community, the Farm to School Program, and for helping bring fresh, local foods to Alabama students!🍠🥬

08/20/2026

Ever wonder how the food on your plate got there? 👀🌽🍅🐄 This book takes us on a journey from the farm ALL the way to the table! 📚

A fun way to help students connect the dots between agriculture, farmers, and the food they enjoy every day. 💚🌱

📖 “Right This Very Minute” is a great addition to your Farm to School bookshelf!

Fresh from the farm to local schools! 🍉🍈 Grandview Mountain Strawberry Farm just wrapped up their latest deliveries of w...
08/19/2026

Fresh from the farm to local schools! 🍉🍈
Grandview Mountain Strawberry Farm just wrapped up their latest deliveries of watermelon and cantaloupe for the Cullman County Child Nutrition .
They began harvesting on Sunday and delivered everything fresh on Monday and today! is so grateful for their partnership and support of local agriculture!
It doesn’t get any fresher than this!💚

🍏🍎Get ready to crunch, Alabama! 🍎🍏We are excited to announce that Alabama's Apple Crunch Day is right around the corner!...
08/17/2026

🍏🍎Get ready to crunch, Alabama! 🍎🍏
We are excited to announce that Alabama's Apple Crunch Day is right around the corner! Join us live on Facebook from Scott's Orchard in Hazel Green, AL as we all take a BIG, LOUD crunch into a fresh, local apple to celebrate Farm to School Month!
🗓 Mark your calendars for October 13th and signup at the link below to join in on the fun!

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/ALACD2026

08/14/2026

Happy back to school from your Alabma Farm to School team!💙 We're checking in with schools across the state to kick off the school year. Dothan City Schools Child Nutrition Program DeKalb County Child Nutrition Program Haleyville City CNP Marshall County Child Nutrition Program and Demopolis City Schools

Address

1445 Federal Drive
Montgomery, AL
36107

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Monday 8am - 5pm
Tuesday 8am - 5pm
Wednesday 8am - 5pm
Thursday 8am - 5pm
Friday 8am - 5pm
Saturday 8am - 4pm
Sunday 10am - 5pm

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+13342407258

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