Michigan Farm to School Updates | | Stay informed on the latest news, resources, and events! | | Save the date! 2025 Michigan Great Apple Crunch | | We are excited to announce the date for the 2025 Michigan Great Apple Crunch! This year we will be hosting the Crunch on Thursday, October 16th. The Michigan Great Apple Crunch is a statewide event that promotes local food and farm to school programs by encouraging as many people as possible to crunch into a juicy Michigan Apple on the same day. Last year, more than 340,000 people participated in the crunch at their local school, hospital, business, organization or from their own home. Be sure to mark the Crunch on your calendars for this year and help us reach the 2025 goal of 400,000 Crunchers in Michigan.
Registration and more information will be available in early August. | 10 Cents a Meal grant application open! | | | The Michigan Department of Education’s 2025-2026 application for 10 Cents a Meal for Michigan's Kids and Farms is available. Any sponsor of a federal Child Nutrition Program is eligible to apply for 10 Cents a Meal!
- 10 Cents a Meal reimburses 50% of the cost of buying and serving Michigan-grown fruits, vegetables, and dry beans in meals and educational activities for children.
- Grantees can also use up to 25% of their grant award to receive 100% reimbursement for transportation and labor expenses such as delivery fees, mileage costs, and part time labor expenses that support the goals of the program.
- To access MDE’s virtual walkthrough of the application process and the 2025-2026 scoring rubric, please visit the How to Apply page.
- Need help or have questions about the 10 Cents a Meal Program? Schedule time with MDE’s Farm to Program team via Microsoft Bookings.
Free training sessions are being offered across the state this summer. These sessions cover how 10 Cents a Meal works, how to source local produce, what is needed to participate, and hands-on application assistance. There is no cost to attend, but registration is required.
- Mason/Ingham – August 7, 2025 2-4pm ET Register
- Macomb - August 14, 2025 2-4pm ET Register
- Flint – August 18, 2025 2-4pm ET Register
- Virtual training – TBD
| | Who's Feeding our Kids: From the Garden | | Another great Who's Feeding Our Kids story was shared on tencentsmichigan.org! This story features Shirley Brezzell, 5th Grade Science and Social Studies teacher and manager of the Mackenzie School Garden. Mackenzie is an Elementary-Middle School located within the Detroit Public Schools Community District. Who’s Feeding Our Kids is a series where different people and organizations within the food system who are working to feed our kids and support the 10 Cents a Meal program are explored. Enjoy this special read!
Read the story | | | | CACFP: Reflecting on the Past and Shaping the Future July 17, 2025 | 3pm ET
The Food Research and Action Center (FRAC) and National Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) will host a webinar on the history and future of the CACFP. | | | Plant, Grow, Share: A FREE Farm to ECE Workshop Series August 11-14, 2025
Four engaging, virtual sessions focused on bringing farm-to-ECE practices into your classroom. Learn practical ways to introduce children to gardening, nutrition, and local food systems—while earning a $100 stipend for your participation. Each session takes place from 10am-12pm. | | | CACFP Virtual Summit August 13-21, 2025
The CACFP Virtual Summit will offer a wide range of workshops on nutrition and meal planning, program operations, financial and non-profit management and more. | | | Life Lab–Certified School Garden Educators Course September 2- December 16, 2025
This 16-week virtual course helps educators create inclusive, engaging garden classrooms that support environmental learning, nutrition education, and social-emotional growth. Cost is $1,400 (includes materials and certification) and is open to all, no prior experience or degree required. Program includes:
- Weekly live Zoom sessions (Tuesdays, 3:30–5:00 PM PT)
- 1-on-1 coaching and flexible asynchronous content
- Certification and access to Life Lab’s curriculum, including The Growing Classroom guide and digital K–2 lessons
| | | Healthy School Food for Thought: 3-part Webinar Series Fall 2025
Join the Chef Ann Foundation for a special, free three-part webinar series. During each webinar, a major topic in today’s school food landscape will be examined — decreasing food waste, reducing ultra-processed foods, and buying more sustainable ingredients — to understand challenges and opportunities. | | | National Black Child Development Institute's 2025 National Conference October 24-26, 2025
This year's conference in Atlanta, Georgia invites us to step into a future rooted in possibility, imagination, and transformation. Three bold tracks will speak directly to the needs, dreams, and liberated futures of Black children and families. Guided by the principles of Afrofuturism, these tracks are not just themes—they are blueprints for reimagining systems, reclaiming narratives, and co-creating a world where Black brilliance thrives without limit. | | | The 10th National Farm to Cafeteria Conference December 2-5, 2025
Early bird tickets are now available at their lowest price! The National Farm to Cafeteria Conference is designed to be a powerful space for learning, networking, and collective action. In light of all of the changes in the food systems space this year, this will be an even more impactful and important moment to gather in person. Whether you’re involved in school nutrition, local food procurement, early care education, or community food access, you are invited to join this December! | | | | Agenda Highlights:
- Curated Workshops and Networking Sessions
- Exhibitor and Poster Sessions
- Intensive Courses: Farm to ECE Deep Dive, Bringing the Farm to Table, Creating and Sustaining School Gardens, and more!
- Field Trips to Local Farm to School Sites
| | 2026 Growing School Gardens Summit February 19-22, 2026
Save the date for February 19 to 22 in Phoenix, Arizona when over 700 school garden educators will gather for four days of peer-to-peer learning, networking, and movement building. Presentation proposals due August 1 for the 2026 Summit. | | | Resources and Inspiration | | | Optimizing Food Distributor Contracts to Achieve Local Food Procurement Targets - The Center for Agriculture and Food Systems has released an excellent resource for food service directors and those working in local food procurement. Optimizing Food Distributor Contracts to Achieve Local Food Procurement Targets explores some of the ways public sector entities might optimize their contracting processes with food distributors to increase local food procurement.
Lake Michigan School Food System Innovation and Spark Awards - The Lake Michigan School Food System Innovation Hub will be offering Spark and Innovation Collaborative grants between $30,000 and $500,000 for districts to innovate and improve school meals. The award cycle is due to open in late 2025; now is a great time to brainstorm and connect to the Michigan State Lead Team to learn more about the Innovation Hub, grants, and resources available.
Farm to School Coordinators: Key Findings from a National Landscape Study | National Farm to School Network - The National Farm to School Network partnered with Colorado State University’s Institute for Research to conduct a nationwide study; their research provides in-depth insight into the responsibilities, challenges, and outcomes of farm to school coordination across the country.
Key takeaways from the report include: - Who farm to school coordinators are and what roles they play
- Strategies for building sustainable, long-term programs
- The impact of coordinators on procurement, education, and community engagement
This summary offers both qualitative stories and quantitative findings to support stronger, more resilient farm to school efforts nationwide.
The 2025 Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) Harvest of the Month - This monthly packet encourages children to learn about nutrition, agriculture, Indigenous food culture and cooking with monthly recipes, coloring pages, and fact sheets. Each month is focused on a different culturally relevant food in season. July’s feature is SUNFLOWERS!
| | | | Blueberries! A Cultivate Michigan Summer Food Explore Michigan blueberry sourcing tips, resources, and recipes for your school site.
| | | About Michigan Farm to School
Farm to School centers around efforts to serve local foods in school and early care and education settings. We share ideas, tools and resources to support a range of efforts, from school garden programming to farmer visits and field trips.
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