Farm to School
Procuring Local Foods
Last Modified: 08/08/2014
From beef and bison in Montana to apples in Michigan and radishes in Rhode Island, school districts across the nation bring school meals to life with creative sourcing strategies. The resources on this page will help guide all the players
(schools, state agencies, nonprofits, producers) through the supply chain of how to buy locally, and correctly!
Guide: Procuring Local Foods for Child Nutrition Programs
Our newest resource for purchasing local foods, Procuring Local Foods for Child Nutrition Programs covers procurement basics, defining local, where to find local products, and the variety of ways schools can purchase locally in accordance
with regulations. Throughout the guide, examples illustrate the many mechanisms available for districts to procure local food.
Finding, Buying, and Serving Local Foods Webinar Series
From January through June, 2014, the USDA Farm to School Program hosted two webinars each month to showcase the variety of ways school districts can purchase local foods. The series started with an introduction to basic procurement principles,
and then walked participants through numerous strategies and tactics for buying local foods. The entire series can be viewed online:
1. Introduction to Procurement
Download a PDF of the slides here and a handout with general procurement resources here.
2. Conducting a Local Procurement Baseline Assessment
Download a PDF of the slides here and a handout with helpful resources here.
3. Finding Local Producers
Download a PDF of the slides here and a handout with helpful resources here.
4. Using the Informal Procurement Method
Download a PDF of the slides here and a handout with helpful resources here.
5. Using the Specifications, Requirements and Evaluation Criteria to Target Local Products
Download a PDF of the slides here and a handout with helpful resources here.
6. Working with Distributors
Download a PDF of the slides here and a handout with helpful resources here.
7. Using a Forward Contract
Download a PDF of the slides here and a handout with helpful resources here.
8. Introduction to Geographic Preference
Download a PDF of the slides here and a handout with helpful resources here.
9. Using Geographic Preference
Download a PDF of the slides here and a handout with helpful resources here.
10. Using USDA Foods as Resource to Purchase Local
Download a PDF of the slides here and a handout with helpful resources here.
11. Using DoD Fresh to Purchase Local
Download a PDF of the slides here and a handout with helpful resources here.
12. Tying It All Together and Digging In
Download a PDF of the slides here and a handout with helpful resources here.
Fact Sheets
10 Facts About Local Food in Schools
Using DOD Fresh to Buy Local
Geographic Preference: What It Is and How To Use It
Selling Local Food to Schools: A Resource for Producers
USDA Foods: A Resource for Buying Local
See more fact sheets here
Policy Memos & Regulations
Final Rule: Geographic Preference Option – The final rule, published in the Federal Register, includes a summary, background, and final regulatory language, by program, for the geographic preference option.
Procurement Geographic Preference Q&As Part I – A memo published in February 2011 addressing questions regarding application of the geographic preference option.
Procurement Geographic Preference Q&As Part II – A memo published in October 2012 addressing additional questions regarding application of the geographic preference option and other mechanisms for local procurement.
School Garden Q&As: Memo SP 32-2009 – This memo clarifies, among other things, that funds from the nonprofit school food service account can be used to purchase seeds and other supplies for starting and maintaining school gardens.
Pilot Project for Procurement of Unprocessed Fruits and Vegetables
The 2014 Farm Bill directs USDA to conduct a pilot for the project for the procurement of unprocessed fruits and vegetables using USDA Foods entitlement dollars. The legislation allows the use of
geographic preference and encourages the procurement of local products. For more information about how states and schools can use this pilot, see the FNS pilot website and
for more information about how vendors can participate, see the AMS pilot website.