Farm‑to‑School backers ask Vermont lawmakers to keep $500,000 each for two local‑food programs

Dana Hudson, coordinator of the Vermont Farm to School and Early Childhood Network, told a legislative committee that she and network members were asking lawmakers to support the governor’s proposed budget by maintaining level funding of $500,000 for the Vermont Farm to School and Early Childhood grant program and $500,000 for the Local Food Incentive (LFI) program. “My name is Dana Hudson, and I am the coordinator of the Vermont Farm to School Early Childhood Network,” she said.

The request was supported by school food directors, local food hub staff, teachers and students who described how the programs increase meal participation and create stable markets for Vermont farmers. For example, Nisha Johnson, child nutrition director for White River Valley Supervisory Union, said the combination of universal meals and local‑food incentives let her staff focus on menu quality rather than paperwork. “Since 2023, as we had shifted our focus to increasing the percentage of local foods we serve to meet the local foods incentive grama threshold, our lunch participation has…