County schools making progress in advancing Farm to School activities

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Farm to school activities and purchasing of local foods are on the rise in San Diego County school districts, according to the 2015-16 State of Farm to School in San Diego County (State of F2S) report (attached) released today by Community Health Improvement Partners (CHIP). Of the 34 San Diego County school districts, 42 participated in this year’s survey, providing a comprehensive assessment of school food procurement and farm to school activities in San Diego County.

Farm to school activities and purchasing of local foods are on the rise in San Diego County school districts, according to the 2015-16 State of Farm to School in San Diego County (State of F2S) report (attached) released today by Community Health Improvement Partners (CHIP). Of the 34 San Diego County school districts, 42 participated in this year’s survey, providing a comprehensive assessment of school food procurement and farm to school activities in San Diego County. The report demonstrates that in the 2015-2016 school year, San Diego County districts spent $17.7 million on local and regional foods, up from $6.9 million in the previous school year. This represents 25 percent of total school food purchasing and is a 160 percnet increase from last year’s reported purchases of local foods.

“Farm to school is an important strategy in reducing childhood obesity,” said Dan Fesperman, Director of the San Diego Childhood Obesity Initiative at CHIP. “Increasing children’s access to fresh, local foods not only gets kids excited about eating healthy, but it also provides a major benefit for our growers. The State of Farm to School in San Diego County report offers an important assessment of farm to school activities and a roadmap for continued success.”

In other words, farm to school creates a win-win-win scenario for all San Diegans by supporting better community health, a prosperous local economy, and the environment.

Additional highlights showcasing the growth in farm to school from the 2013-14 school year to 2015-16 include:

40percent increase in school gardens

200 percent more farm to school activities, which include nutrition education, school gardens, or local, healthy food procurements

470 percent increase in local foods purchasing

The State of F2S report also highlights the value of the San Diego County Farm to School Taskforce, a collaborative working to grow the farm to school movement, and identifies recommendations school districts, local growers, and food distributors can take to expand farm to school activities. Overall, farm to school progress has been excellent over the last few years in San Diego, but there is still room for large-scale growth and improvement. And that is exciting.

For more information about the State of Farm to School in San Diego County report, please contact:

About Community Health Improvement Partners

Community Health Improvement Partners (CHIP) is a San Diego non-profit collaboration of organizations who envision communities where everyone achieves optimal health. The mission of CHIP is to advance long-term solutions to priority health needs through collaboration and community engagement. CHIP members include hospitals, health plans, community clinics, community-based organizations, physicians, universities, and the County of San Diego Health & Human Services Agency, among others. CHIP facilitates the San Diego County Farm to School Taskforce and Nutrition in Healthcare Leadership Team, two countywide consortiums comprised of institutional food services, growers, distributors, and other key stakeholders working to increase local, sustainable procurement in schools and hospitals. For more information, visit www.sdchip.org or contact Prem Durairaj, CHIP Director of Food systems and Research, at pdurairaj@sdchip.org or 858-609-7862.

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