Food for Thought: Getting Farm-to-Fork into California's Public Schools

Eating local, sustainable and seasonal is something we hear a lot in the “Farm-to-Fork” capital city of Sacramento. Is that message making its its way to school lunchrooms here as well? California public schools serve 560 million lunches a year. In a state that also grows a lot of this country’s food, it makes sense that young Californians would eat California-grown meals. Many school districts are trying to get local ingredients on the menu. And other organizations, from Bay Area startups to the California Department of Food and Agriculture, are helping them out with a big push to promote healthy eating and local agriculture. But three questions: How will school districts pay for it? How can parents, farmers and other food promoters help out? And will California kids eat it if it’s not fried or chocolate? We’re bringing together a great group of panelists who are working hard at putting healthier options on schoolchildren’s breakfast trays and lunch plates. Join us for a food-focused conversation about how schools, parents, the public and private sectors, and foodies in general can work together to bring the fresh high-end cuisine California is known for into the cafeteria.

PANELISTS
* Nick Anicich, Farm to School Program lead at the California Department of Food and Agriculture
* Diana Flores, director of Nutrition Services, and the future Central Kitchen, at Sacramento City Unified School District
* Todd McPherson, Urban Agriculture Academy coordinator at Luther Burbank High School
* Kirsten Saenz Tobey, co-founder and chief impact officer of Revolution Foods
* Amber Stott, founding executive director of the Food Literacy Center