Maryland to Host Farm to School Workshop on Feb. 22

ANNAPOLIS, MD (February 9, 2012) –  The Maryland Department of Agriculture (MDA) and Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) will host a Maryland Farm to School Workshop:  Growing Connections on Wednesday, Feb. 22, at the Eastern Shore Hospital Center – English Hall in Cambridge. Advance registration is requested by Friday, Feb. 17. There is no cost to attend and lunch will be provided.

The workshop is designed for Maryland growers and school food and nutrition service (FNS) directors and staff to learn about opportunities to work with one another. The workshop is focused on producers and mid-shore and lower shore school systems.

Public schools are looking to buy a wide variety of fruits and vegetables from Maryland’s farms such as asparagus, cantaloupes, green beans, green peppers, collards, spinach, kale, edamame, soybeans, cauliflower, lima beans, parsnips, peaches, watermelon, sweet potatoes to name a few.  Some schools systems are also looking to buy milk, yogurt, cheese, flounder, beef, and poultry.

This interactive workshop is designed to:

• Teach strategies on how to incorporate more Maryland farm products into school meals;
• Understand the USDA geographic preference rule and why this rule is important for producers to know;
• Learn more about Maryland Good Agricultural Practices (MD GAP) and understand food safety concerns;
• Build connections for food and nutrition service staff, local producers and area nutrition and agricultural groups; and
• Explore options to overcome distribution challenges.

Register online at www.marylandfarmtoschool.org. For more information, contact Karen Fedor, MDA, at 410-841-5773 or by email at fedorkm@mda.state.md.us; or Sarah Trist, MSDE, 410-760-0222, or by email at strist@msde.state.md.us