USDA Census Shows Growing Farm to School Movement

The USDA Farm to School Census (view data), which collected farm to school programming and procurement data from the 2022-2023 school year, was released in mid-October 2024 and shows that participation in farm to school activities has grown nationally by 14% since the previous Farm to School Census (2019). 

The USDA Farm to School Census is a great way to measure progress in meeting Farm to School goals and to see how the work of individual School Food Authorities (SFAs) compares to the state and national landscape. Digging into census data can help SFAs communicate Farm to School success as well as provide data-driven evidence for investment in new programming when approaching funders. View census results at the state and individual SFA level.  

Key Massachusetts state findings include: 

• 68.4% of Massachusetts SFAs serve local food in their Child Nutrition Program meals (compared to 62.7% of SFAs nationally)
• 24.9% of Massachusetts SFAs have edible gardens (compared to 14.7% of SFAs nationally)
• Further investment could be made in the following programs that reported low integration of local food when compared to the national average: Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program (FFVP), Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) and CACFP At-Risk, Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) 

Interested in learning more about how individual SFAs can increase local food purchasing and local food system education? Visit our How-To Guides.