Senators Blunt Rochester, Welch, Collins Reintroduce Bipartisan Bill to Expand Farm to School Program

U.S. Senators Lisa Blunt Rochester, Peter Welch of Vermont and Susan Collins of Maine have reintroduced the Farm to School Act, bipartisan legislation with the goal of getting more fresh, locally grown foods in schools across the nation. The Senators’ legislation would increase annual funding for the program, reduce barriers to applying for Farm to School Program grants, as well as support initiatives for the program. Since its creation in 2010, the Farm to School Program has invested over $100 million in bringing local foods to schools nationwide—including more than 250 schools and 142,000 students reached in Delaware during the 2022 to 2023 school year. Officials say that demand for the program far outpaces available funding, with fewer than one in four grant applications approved annually. The Farm to School Act would increase the program’s mandatory funding from $5 million to $15 million per year and increase the maximum grant award to $500,000.

A one pager on the bill can be found here. The full text can be found here.