October is National Farm to School Month

0
Noli Taylor with, from left, Hope Guardenier from School Sprouts, Lisa Damon from the Massachusetts Farm to School Project, and Denise Courtney from the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. Courtesy Island Grown Initiative.

Since 2015, Massachusetts legislators and school advocates have celebrated a Farm to School Day at the State House, joining the national movement to bring awareness to this work during the month of October. This is an annual event organized by the Massachusetts Farm to School Project, which sprang from the legislation Island Grown Initiative (IGI) spearheaded in 2015 with students from Island high schools and our former state representative, Tim Madden, which created Massachusetts Farm to School Month.

On Oct. 3 this year, IGI community food education director Noli Taylor joined legislators and farm-to-school advocates from across the state at the State House to celebrate farm-to-school programs, and their positive impact on local farm economies, student health and wellness, and Massachusetts schools.