The Utah State Board of Education on Friday recognized the state's Farm to School participants and described recent outcomes from a U.S. Department of Agriculture grant to expand use of local food in school meals.

Patty Norman opened the recognition, asking Kimberly Loveland, Michelle Martin and Danielle Perez to come forward or wave from online. Michelle Martin briefed the board on fall promotions and grant-supported work.

"We celebrated another successful year," Martin said, citing 41 Apple Crunch events statewide and an estimate that about 120,000 Utahns participated by taking a bite of locally grown apples. Board members said the promotion also increased reported spending on local apples compared with the prior year.

Norman told board members the Utah State Board of Education had received a USDA Local Food for Schools cooperative agreement and that the grant provided roughly $1,900,000 to purchase local food. The program set up a statewide contract for six local producers of beef and bison to reduce administrative burdens for local education agencies, Norman said, and funding was allocated to 135 school districts, charter schools and private schools for local beef and bison purchases. Reimbursements to schools will continue through April 2025, she said.

Board members praised the educational components of Farm to School: that the program connects students to local farms, engages classroom learning aligned to core standards and offers culinary trainings and peer-learning groups for school nutrition staff. Norman and staff described 13 regional movement-building hubs and other events such as apple- and harvest-focused promotions meant to teach students about nutrition and life cycles.

Board members and presenters also described in-classroom and extracurricular garden projects that link school meals, hands-on learning and community food access in some remote areas. No board action was required on the recognition item.