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Lawmakers hear support for Farm to School and early care grants as federal funding wanes
Summary
Representative Nelson's HF 1795 would fund Minnesota's Farm to School and Early Care program and kitchen equipment grants; farmers and program operators testified that program purchases provide significant, stable markets for small and mid-sized farms and support school meal quality, while witnesses warned of federal funding losses.
House File 1795, carried by Representative Rick Nelson, seeks state funding for the Minnesota Farm to School and Early Care grant program, which reimburses districts and early-care settings that purchase Minnesota-grown foods and provides kitchen equipment grants to allow more scratch cooking.
Representative Nelson told the committee the program supports purchases of locally grown fruits, vegetables, eggs, beef, pork, poultry, wild rice, maple syrup and local grains and now includes early-care settings. "This program reimburses school district and early care settings where the purchases from Minnesota farmers, allowing them to serve locally grown and fresh food to their children," Nelson said.
Joan Olsen of Prairie Drifter Farm in Litchfield described Farm to School as a growing, reliable market. "Last year in 2024 farm to school is 10.6% of our farm income and now in 2025 ... we're expecting farm to school to be 30% of our farm budget this year," Olsen said, describing how the program enabled her farm to provide a wide variety of produce and preservation support to area schools.
Cindy Vanderpool of Pastures of Plenty Farm said the program provides market stability and local economic benefits. She told the committee that the loss of more than $13 million in promised federal Farm to School funding would have been "devastating" for producers and processors who planned to supply districts. Vanderpool also described school demand for local products, noting one school’s disappointment when weather interrupted deliveries of farm-fresh eggs that students had come to expect.
Representative Nelson noted demand and waiting lists: "We're seeing more and more demand for this program every year. In 2023 we had $5,300,000 in requests for this funding. Right now, we fund this program at $1,290,000.00," he said.
The bill was moved and laid over for further committee consideration. Testifiers urged the committee to fill the federal gap with state funds and to consider the program's outreach, coordination and kitchen equipment components as central to enabling schools to serve fresh, local foods.
Action: Representative Nelson moved House File 1795 and the committee laid the bill over for possible inclusion; no appropriation amount was finalized in committee.
