Get Involved
Urgent action is needed to sustain farm to school activity in Massachusetts.
The Farm to School MA FRESH Grant is operating with temporary funding.
We need YOUR support to continue the program.
Farm to School Grant Bill
An Act Establishing Farm to School Grants to Promote Healthy Eating & Strengthen the Agricultural Economy (H.558 & S.243)
A pilot Farm to School Grant Program was established with $1 million in COVID relief funds in the last legislative session. With your support, we can establish a permanent grant program in Massachusetts. Let your legislators know why farm to school is important in your community.
We've drafted the message, but we encourage you to personalize the email to make your message more powerful - you can type directly into the message field!
Share your story and why you believe a farm to school grant program is good for students, for farmers, and for communities now more than ever!
* Curious if your legislators are co-sponsors of this bill? You can check by visiting the bill’s website (linked above). If they have signed on, you can include a thank you & express your support.
Sign up as an individual or organization to help bring Massachusetts Food to Massachusetts Kids
Meet with your Legislator
One of the best ways to ensure that your issue remains top of mind for legislators is to build a relationship by meeting one-on-one with your local legislator(s). That’s why we are asking all members and friends of the MA Food for MA Kids Coalition to contact your legislators to tell them why farm to school is important in your community and ask them to support the Farm to School bill.
Having your legislators see what farm to school looks like in person can be one of the most impactful ways to create new farm to school champions in the State House. Invite your legislators to join your school for a lunch that features local foods, see students enjoying a lesson in a school garden, or participate in any other aspect of your farm to school program. You don’t need to put on a whole special event for them to understand the power of your program.
Check out this toolkit from the National Farm to School Network about hosting a legislative visit. It includes sample invite text, a sample agenda, and lots more.
Find your legislator here. Let us know if you’re having trouble getting in touch.
Check out tips for requesting a meeting, including sample email language and a sample meeting agenda and talking points.
If you meet with your legislator, let us know!
Coalition Monthly Meetings
Your voice is needed to make this vision of a healthy, resilient, and equitable school food environment a reality.
The Massachusetts Food for Massachusetts Kids Coalition meets on the first Thursday of the month to move this advocacy effort forward. Sign up to receive emails about these meetings and other updates.
Engage Your Students in Farm to School Advocacy!
Are you an educator? Do you work with students in or out of a school setting? Help them advocate for Farm to School in their communities by encouraging them to fill out a Farm to School Student Advocacy Form! Send the forms back to us and we’ll deliver them to Massachusetts legislators from your community. Send forms to Mass. Farm to School, P.O. Box 213, Beverly, MA 01915 or scan and email dena@massfarmtoschool.org).
Share with Your Networks
Encourage your friends & colleagues to ask their legislators to co-sponsor the farm to school grant bill.
Help us build a large and diverse group of advocates advancing MA Food for MA Kids.
Share why farm to school is important with your legislators.