Green Mountain Farm-to-School (GMFTS) is a leader in the growing farm-to-school movement in Vermont. Our mission is to strengthen local food systems in Vermont by promoting positive economic relationships, education, and access between schools, farms, and communities.
We create and sustain healthy communities by working across the food system with capacity building, resource development, and technical assistance through our Farm-to-School program, Farm Direct food hub, and Lunchbox food truck.
Our Programs
Thank you to our 2025 premier sponsors – The Abbey Group and Community National Bank!
Our work is made possible because of a network of businesses, institutions, organizations and community members who are in partnership with us.
You can view all our supporters here. Interested in becoming a sponsor? Please contact Catherine at ccusack@gmfts.org
Follow Our Story
Roses are red. Violets are blue. Supporting our local food system starts with you. Spread the love by shopping local this Valentine’s Day! 🩷
🍯 Gift some honey to your honey! Adorable bear-shaped 12 oz bottles of liquid honey from Northwoods Apiaries (Westfield) make a perfect present.
🍫 Feel the love with the “Love” Chocolate Bar from Prophecy Chocolate (Morrisville), featuring cacao, maple sugar, damiana, rose, and vanilla.
🌹Indulge in the sweetness of Vermont’s fields and forests with Maple Wild Rose Ganache Chocolate from Sweet Mountain Chocolate (Westfield).
🎁 Treat those closest to you with decadent gluten and dairy-free brownies from West Meadow Farm Bakery(Essex Junction).
🍨 Top it all off with some luscious Chocolate Raspberry Truffle ice cream from Kingdom Creamery of Vermont (Hardwick).
This Valentine’s Day at Green Mountain Farm Direct, we’re celebrating the connections that make our local food system thrive – our producers, who pour their hearts into growing and creating fresh, delicious products, and our customers, who support Vermont farmers and food makers every day.
Learn more about our food hub by visiting our website: greenmountainfarmdirect.org
We’ve had a fun-filled Farm-to-School winter at Derby Elementary School! K–2 students explored pumpkins, sheep, and seeds as part of their classroom units, while 5th graders dove into garden preservation by making pickles and tasting sauerkraut.
Classroom unit lessons allow us to connect with students in meaningful ways while keeping learning hands-on, even when we’re inside in the cold months. Curiosity, creativity, and food exploration don’t hibernate for winter!
On Tuesday, our team prepared and served the community lunch at the Barton Hub. On the menu was BBQ pulled pork (from our very own Meggie’s pig, Waffles), coleslaw, smokey BBQ beans featuring black beans from Morningstar Farm in Glover, maple-glazed carrots gleaned by Salvation Farms and prepped by students at Troy School, cornbread, and our famous beet-brownies to pay homage to January’s Harvest of the Month: beets!
Staff volunteer days like this bring our team closer together, and closer to our communities. Thank you to @nekorganizing and all our friends at the Barton Hub for making these meals happen each week. Feeding community nutritious, local food fills our hearts with joy!
Last month, Jay Westfield Joint Elementary School’s kindergarten class finished off a series of farm unit lessons with the Poultry Power lesson! Students learned about chickens, their importance to farmers, and the parts of an egg. 🥚🐓
✨ Meet the Team: Introducing Emma! ✨
Emma is our newest team member and joined GMFTS this month as our Food Hub Account Manager, where she builds partnerships that connect local farmers and producers with schools, institutions, and retailers through Green Mountain Farm Direct.
She holds a degree in Environmental Studies from UVM and is a trained clinical herbalist, with a background in agricultural, herbal, and environmental education. Outside of work, Emma loves skiing, mountain biking, playing bass, practicing archery, and dancing salsa!
We’re so excited to have Emma on the GMFTS team—welcome!
Read more about Emma and our other team members on our website.
Join the team at Green Mountain Farm-to-School! We are seeking an AmeriCorps Farm-to-School Coordinator who is passionate about supporting local food systems and enhancing the lives of elementary students through hands-on education. If you enjoy teaching, gardening, and cooking, this six-month position, starting in mid to late February and running through late August 2026, could be the perfect fit for you. This is a fantastic opportunity to kick-start your career while engaging in meaningful community service amidst the stunning beauty and culture of Northern Vermont. 🌄🌱 Link in bio to learn more and apply!
To kick off a series of “Meet Our Team” posts, we’re introducing our Food Systems Intern, Ephraim! Ephraim is a high school senior and 2nd generation farmer from Lowell, VT. In Lowell, Ephriam grew up with our Farm-to-School program, and says some of his fondest school memories are when GMFTS came to his classroom. He is eager to learn more about the food system in order to run and grow his family business someday.
Ephraim loves most things fantasy and plays games like Dungeons and Dragons and Magic the Gathering. He has experience blacksmithing and sheet metal working.
Here he is pictured at the CAE Farm Connex warehouse in Hardwick, helping manage inventory for our food hub, Farm Direct.
Last week, fifth graders at Newport City Elementary School explored the science of preservation and fermentation! 🥬
Students didn’t just learn how fermentation works—they put it into practice by making sauerkraut right in the classroom. Now they’ll get to observe the changes as the fermentation process happens in real time.
