The Whole Apple
By Arlene Shannon When fall arrives, we turn to familiar, reliable foods such as apples, pumpkins, root vegetables, and squash. This year was a tough one for apple growers in the Northeast. A hard frost in May [...]
5 Reasons to Eat Local
1. Support Farmers and Your Local Economy Large scale farms from out-of-state and industrial agriculture account for a significant percentage of Vermonters’ total food consumption. According to Ellen Kahler, the Executive Director of the Vermont Sustainable Jobs [...]
Reliable Radishes
By Arlene ShannonRadishes are a friend to both the gardener and the garden. Many of us know radishes as only a spicy and colorful addition to a salad, but there are different types, many ways to use [...]
Waste Not, Want Not – Tips to Reduce Food Waste
Fruits In and Out of the Fridge What fruits go in the fridge and what ones are best left outside the fridge? Apples and citrus fruits all do best in your fridge’s fruit crisper drawer. Berries and [...]
Meet the Farmers: Berry Creek Farm
Berry Creek Farm is a 158-acre organic farm located in Westfield, VT. For the past 31 years, Gerard and Rosemary Croizet have run the farm together. They sell their fruits, vegetables, flowers and more, as well as [...]
Meet the Farmers: Blue Ledge Farm
Blue Ledge Farm is a first generation, family owned goat dairy and cheese-making operation on 150 acres in Sallsbury, VT. For 23 years, Greg Bernhardt and Hannah Sessions have run and developed the farm together. The Blue [...]
10 Benefits of Gardening on Well-being
By Emma Trainor Immune System Boost Did you know that skin- to-soil contact actually helps boost the functioning of your immune system? It turns out that getting “dirty” is a great way to increase the body's [...]
School Meals and Local Food for All Students
Universal School Meals Program What is it? The Universal School Meals Program was enacted at the start of the pandemic and supported through federal funding. That funding ran out last year and lawmakers extended the program for [...]
Butterworks Farm Field Trip
February 16th, 2023 3rd and 5th graders from Irasburg Village School took a field trip to Butterworks Farm in Westfield, VT to learn about how yogurt is made and what the process of running a Vermont dairy [...]
Farm Partner Spotlight: Creek Valley Farm
Located in Irasburg, Creek Valley Farm is in its third year of business. The farm is owned and operated by Lorinda Campbell, Charleen Miles and Mel Tyree. The farm’s small herd of Jersey cows are rotationally grazed. [...]
Going on Now! How Do You Get Your Garden On? CONTEST!
Join Green Mountain Farm-to School on Social Media! Take a photo or short video of your garden! Tell us how you celebrate VT’s agricultural heritage! Tag us (Green Mountain Farm-to-School) in your post or post right onto [...]
Vermont Everyone Eats Continues Through April 1, 2022
NEWPORT, VT Green Mountain Farm-to-School Contact: Alida Farrell, afarrell@gmfts.org, (802) 334-2044 January 3, 2022 Vermont Everyone Eats Continues Through April 1, 2022 Vermont Everyone Eats (VEE), the innovative COVID-19 response program that provides meal assistance to Vermonters [...]
Fall 2021 Newsletter
Click here to read our Fall newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/0e272160a11b/gmfts-spring-newsletter-4876338?e=ff5f03a9f2
Matt Landi Named Director of Brand and Business Development for Vermont Way Foods™
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Matt Landi, Director of Brand and Business Development, Vermont Way Foods™ or Catherine Cusack, Communications Committee Chair, Vermont Food Hub Collaborative L3C Phone: (831) 818-0179 (Matt) (802) 334-2044 (Catherine) Email: Matt@vermontwayfoods.com Matt Landi [...]
Vermont Harvest of the Month and Early Childhood Education: Stories of Success at Newport Head Start
Vermont Harvest of the Month and Early Childhood Education: Stories of Success at Newport Head Start NEWPORT, VT Contact: Maire Folan, Farm to School Program Manager, Green Mountain Farm-to-School mfolan@gmfts.org June 17, 2021 Vermont Harvest of the [...]
Spring 2021 Newsletter
Read our Spring Newsletter here: https://mailchi.mp/38d3315b8236/gmfts-spring-newsletter-4811866?e=9afbbebcf6
Vermont Everyone Eats, One Million Meals Served
CONTACTS Alida Farrell Consumer Education and Food Access Coordinator Green Mountain Farm to School afarrell@gmfts.org Meghan Wayland Food Access Coordinator The Center for an Agricultural Economy meghan@hardwickagricultre.com Everyone Eats, one million meals served On Thursday, April 29, [...]
GMFTS Delivering Free Meals to Migrant Farm Workers in the NEK through Vermont Everyone Eats
Green Mountain Farm-to-School Delivering Free Meals to Migrant Farm Workers in the NEK through Vermont Everyone EatsNEWPORT, VTContact: Alida Farrell, Local Food Access Coordinatorafarrell@gmfts.orgMarch 22, 2021In an effort to reach some of the most important yet underserved [...]
Green Mountain Farm Direct Hits Record Sales Week, Distributes More Local Food to NEK Communities
NEWPORT, VTContact: Amrita Parry, Food Hub Accounts ManagerGreen Mountain Farm-to-Schoolaparry@gmfts.org (802) 334-2044 Green Mountain Farm Direct Hits Record Sales Week, Distributes More Local Food to NEK Communities Green Mountain Farm-to-School (GMFTS) is a small nonprofit based out of [...]
GMFTS Receives New Grants from the Vermont Community Foundation to Increase Capacity, Address Food Insecurity in the NEK
Alida Farrell, GMFTS’s new Local Food Access Coordinator, pictured with bags of food prepared at the Orleans Federated Church Community Food Shelf. FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE NEWPORT, VT Contact: Jessica Weston, Communications and Development Coordinator Green Mountain Farm-to-School [...]
Dismantling the Thanksgiving Myth with Kids
By Esmé Forbes, AmeriCorps Farm to School Coordinator Visual depiction of the Haudenosaunee Thanksgiving Address (Ohen:ton Karihwatehkwen) - Greetings to the Natural World by Erwin Printup, Jr. The illustration is from the book, Giving Thanks: A Native American [...]
Green Mountain Farm-to-School Delivers Free Meals for Vermont Everyone Eats
Green Mountain Farm-to-School (GMFTS) has partnered with the new Vermont Everyone Eats program to distribute prepared meals to people negatively impacted by the pandemic. GMFTS is delivering 350 meals per week in the NEK. The program reimburses [...]
GMFTS is The White Market’s “Coins for Community” Partner during October
Big news! Green Mountain Farm-to-School (GMFTS) has partnered with the White Market for their Coins for Community program which allows customers to donate to a rotating local nonprofit organization each month. For the entire month of October, [...]
Farm to School is Enhancing the Outdoor Classroom in Northeast Kingdom Schools
NEWPORT, VT Contact: Maire Folan, mfolan@gmfts.org (802) 334-2044 September 21, 2020 Green Mountain Farm-to-School (GMFTS) is working with 15 schools in the Northeast Kingdom to provide meaningful STEM learning opportunities in the outdoors this school year. “Outdoor [...]
GMFTS Hosts Free Local Food Distribution Event with NEKCA in Canaan
NEWPORT, VTContact: Jessica Weston, jweston@gmfts.org, (802) 334-2044September 16, 2020Green Mountain Farm-to-School (GMFTS), a small nonprofit based out of Newport, VT, has been working to fight ongoing COVID-19 related food insecurity while contributing to local economic recovery by [...]
Green Mountain Farm-to-School Launches New Initiatives to Fight COVID-19 Food Insecurity in the Northeast Kingdom
NEWPORT, VTContact: Jessica Weston, jweston@gmfts.org, (802) 334-2044July 20, 2020 Green Mountain Farm-to-School (GMFTS), a small nonprofit organization seeks to mitigate COVID-related food insecurity and promote the use of local food in the Northeast Kingdom through various new [...]
The Market Basket Returns to Provide Free, Local Produce to the Community
In an effort to get more local food out to our community and to reduce waste in school gardens, GMFTS is expanding the Lunchbox’s “Market Basket” program for 2020. After a successful pilot year in 2019, Green [...]
The Lunchbox Returns with Free Summer Meal Service for Children
The Lunchbox, a mobile food truck and free meal service, is on back on the road after a long winter hibernation! Starting June 17th, the Lunchbox will be serving 9 weeks of free meals to kids 18 [...]
Green Mountain Farm-to-School Receives $10,000 Grant to Purchase and Deliver Local Food for Area Food Pantries
NEWPORT, VTContact: Jessica Weston, jweston@gmfts.org, (802) 334-2044May 5, 2020Green Mountain Farm Direct (GMFD), a local food hub run by Green Mountain Farm-to-School (GMFTS), works to connect local farms with schools, restaurants, and institutions across Northern Vermont to [...]
#GivingTuesdayNow and Beyond – A Spring Fundraiser to Support GMFTS’s Response to COVID-19
#GivingTuesdayNow and Beyond - A Spring Fundraiser to Support GMFTS’s Response to COVID-19Here at Green Mountain Farm-to-School (GMFTS) we are encouraged by the resiliency of our community under such sudden and extraordinary pressures. We have seen so [...]
GMFTS Finding New Ways to Support our Community
With Spring, there comes Hope ...and GARDENS! Dear GMFTS Family - in these times of uncertainty we are grateful to have you as our friends, partners, and supporters - - we are thinking of you and hope [...]
An Update from Green Mountain Farm Direct Regarding COVID-19
Dear Farm Direct community, We would like to take this opportunity to update you on our operations during the COVID-19 outbreak. Green Mountain Farm Direct remains open and operational and we are dedicated to bringing you fresh, [...]
Benefit Raffle: Win a Jay Peak Getaway!
Online sales for the raffle are now closed! Tickets may be purchased in-person at the 12th Annual Taste of the Kingdom until 8pm
GMFTS Helps Host Northeast Regional Farm to School Gathering at Canaan School
At Canaan School this past October, Green Mountain Farm-to-School (GMFTS) and the Center for an Agricultural Economy (CAE) hosted the Vermont Farm to School Network’s Regional Fall Gathering for the Northeast. The gathering served as a celebration [...]
Farm Direct Engages in first Hub-to-Hub Transaction
In early December, Green Mountain Farm to School (GMFTS)’s local food hub, Green Mountain Farm Direct (GMFD), successfully engaged in it’s first hub-to-hub transaction in an effort to expand the product catalog for the holidays. GMFD is [...]
GMFTS Welcomes Two New Staff Members
Green Mountain Farm-to-School (GMFTS) is happy to announce the arrival of two new additions to our team - Jessica Weston and Laurie Evans. Jessica joined in September as Communications and Development Coordinator, and Laurie joined in October [...]
Local School Harvest Festivals are a Success!
NEWPORT, VT Contact: Jessica Weston, jweston@gmfts.org, (802) 334-2044 October 9, 2019 Did you know? October is National Farm to School Month! Green Mountain Farm To School (GMFTS) was excited to celebrate this occasion with the successful completion [...]
GMFTS Coaches State Grant Recipients in Farm to School
In February 2019, Farm to School Program Manager, Maire Folan, began serving as a coach for the 2019 grantees of the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food & Markets (VAAFM) Farm to School Program. The coaching support Folan [...]
19 school gardens thrive through the summer
NEWPORT, VT - July 29, 2019 A cornerstone of Green Mountain Farm-to-School’s programming is the 19 school gardens we plant, maintain, and harvest with the help of five AmeriCorps Farm to School Coordinators. These school gardens provide [...]
The Lunchbox is on track to serve more free, locally-sourced meals than ever before!
Since June 19th, the Lunchbox food truck has served over 1800 free youth meals in Barton, Newport, and Derby, Vermont. The Lunchbox is a free summer meal site and mobile learning kitchen operated in partnership by Green [...]
The Children’s Literacy Foundation Brings Stories and Books to the Lunchbox
Contact: Sophie Westover swestover@gmfts.org 802 334 2044 [Newport, VT] — On Wednesday, July 10, 2019 from 10:30 AM – 11:30 AM at the Barton Public Library, children and teens are invited to a storytelling presentation and brand-new [...]
2019 Summer Block Party Kicks off Summer
Green Mountain Farm-to-School (GMFTS) is hosting it’s 5th Summer Block Party in the Kingdom, a free community event, on June 20 from 3 PM to 6 PM at Gardner Park in Newport. The event marks the start [...]
Lunchbox Returns with Summer Food Service Program
The Lunchbox, a summer meal program providing food education, is on the road again this season! Starting June 19th, the Lunchbox will be serving 10 weeks of free meals to kids 18 and under throughout the summer. [...]
Production Planning: Bringing Harvest of the Month Foods to Cafeteria Plates
How three GMFTS programs - Green Mountain Farm Direct, Farm to School, and the Vermont Harvest of the Month - work together to increase the amount of fresh Vermont-grown foods on cafeteria plates. In 2009, GMFTS founded [...]
GMFTS 2017-2018 Annual Report
Green Mountain Farm to School is pleased to share our 2017-2018 Annual Report with our community. Read the full report here.
Green Mountain Farm-to School to Honor School Lunch Heroes
School Lunch Hero Day is May 3, 2019 NEWPORT, Vermont – Green Mountain Farm-to-School (GMFTS) works with a variety of school nutrition staff at schools throughout the region. These professionals are critical to getting local food onto [...]
The ‘Coventry Shredders’ join the 12th Annual Jr. Iron Chef competition
By: Rachel Proctor April 9, 2019 NEWPORT, VERMONT- Four, sixth-grade students from Coventry Village School were proud to compete with 67 other Vermont schools at the 12th Annual Jr. Iron Chef competition hosted by Vermont Food Education [...]
Employment Opportunity: AmeriCorps Farm to School Coordinator
Full Posting: GMFTS FTS Coordinator, 2019-2020 This position is part of the Lyndon Economic opportunity AmeriCorps Program (LEAP). LEAP is a national service program that places AmeriCorps members with non-profit organizations throughout the NEK of Vermont to [...]
GMFTS & Jay Peak Resort hosts the 11th Annual Taste of the Kingdom
NEWPORT — The 11th Annual Taste of the Kingdom, a fundraising event held by Green Mountain Farm-to-School (GMFTS), will take place on February 27th at 6 p.m. at Jay Peak Resort’s Foeger Ballroom. Tickets are on sale [...]
Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Coupon Program increases access to healthy foods
For the fourth consecutive year, Green Mountain Farm-to-School is offering $60,000 in coupons for the purchase of fresh fruits and vegetables to the residents of Essex and Orleans counties enrolled in 3SquaresVT, also known as the Supplemental [...]
Celebrate National Farm to School Month in October
October is National Farm to School Month, a time to celebrate connections happening all over the country between schools, food, and local farmers! Farm to school enriches the connections communities have with fresh, healthy food and local [...]
Customer Spotlight: Craig Lorcano on 9 years with Farm Direct
Green Mountain Farm-to-School’s mission-driven food hub, Green Mountain Farm Direct (Farm Direct), is a reliable source for wholesale local food purchasing that is working to improve farm viability in the region. Last year, GMFD worked with 34 [...]
Lunchbox food truck works to fill summer nutrition gap
Green Mountain Farm-to-School’s mobile summer meal site, the Lunchbox food truck spent the summer out on the road again serving up free healthy, locally-sourced meals to our community. This year, the Lunchbox served 1,820 free meals to [...]
Farm to School Coordinators gear up for the coming school year
Farm field trips, taste tests, cooking lessons, harvest festivals, and soil science projects are just a few components of the hands-on education AmeriCorps Farm to School Coordinators provide to students across the region. We caught up with [...]
GMFTS Giving Day raises over $30,000 to support programming
June 11, 2018 Green Mountain Farm-to-School (GMFTS) would like to extend its most sincere thank you to supporters of its first-ever Giving Day held on June 1, 2018. The day brought in over $20,000 in gifts, along [...]
Gala on the Lake Goes Swimmingly
Green Mountain Farm-to-School (GMFTS) hosted its 4th Annual Gala on the Lake in August, raising over $6,500 that will go towards tending school gardens, sourcing local food in the cafeteria, and working to create healthy communities centered around good food. Read More...
AmeriCrops Growing Knowledge of Nutrition and Local Agriculture
Press contact: Shane Rogers Communications, Outreach, and Development Associate Green Mountain Farm-to-School srogers@gmfts.org | 802-334-2044 For Immediate Release Students Growing Knowledge of Nutrition and Local Agriculture Be on the lookout, AmeriCorps members serving with Green Mountain Farm-to-School [...]
Year in Photos | Green Mountain Farm-to-School
Press contact: Shane Rogers Communications, Outreach, and Development Associate Green Mountain Farm-to-School srogers@gmfts.org | 802-334-2044 Year in Photos| Green Mountain Farm-to-School At Green Mountain Farm-to-School we are very thankful to have enjoyed a great year! We worked [...]
Join GMFTS in Celebrating #GivingTuesday!
Today is #GivingTuesday!If we receive 50 gifts today, a generous Green Mountain Farm-to-School supporter has pledged $5,000 towards the organization. Will you help us realize our goal? Together we can connect more Vermonters to healthy, affordable, and local [...]
Farm-to-School Conference Sows Ideas in Northeast Kingdom
Press contact: Shane Rogers Communications, Outreach, and Development Associate Green Mountain Farm-to-School srogers@gmfts.org | 802-334-2044 For Immediate Release Farm-to-School Conference Sows Ideas in Northeast Kingdom Green Mountain Farm-to-School (GMFTS), in collaboration with Sterling College, hosted over 100 [...]
Farming for more than just a Profit – Harvest Hill Farm
Press contact: Shane Rogers Communications, Outreach, and Development Associate Green Mountain Farm-to-School srogers@gmfts.org | 802-334-2044 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Farming for more than just a Profit – Harvest Hill Farm “The mission of the farm is to grow [...]
Farm-to-School Grows All Year in Vermont
Press contact: Shane Rogers Communications, Outreach, and Development Associate Green Mountain Farm-to-School srogers@gmfts.org | 802-334-2044 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Farm-to-School Grows All Year in Vermont Vermont- 10/19/2015 – October is National Farm-to-School Month, a nationwide celebration of farm-to-school established [...]
Northern Vermont Food Hub Refocused and Redesigned
Press contact: Shane Rogers Communications, Outreach, and Development Associate Green Mountain Farm-to-School srogers@gmfts.org | 802-334-2044 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Northern Vermont Food Hub Refocused and Redesigned Green Mountain Farm Direct (Farm Direct), the regional food hub operated by [...]
Coupons Encourage Fresh Eating in Northeast Kingdom
Press contact: Shane Rogers Communications, Outreach, and Development Associate Green Mountain Farm-to-School srogers@gmfts.org | 802-334-2044 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Coupons Encourage Fresh Eating in Northeast Kingdom Green Mountain Farm-to-School (GMFTS) is piloting a new program that allows Orleans [...]
New Faces of Green Mountain Farm-to-School
Press contact: Shane Rogers Communications, Outreach, and Development Associate Green Mountain Farm-to-School srogers@gmfts.org | 802-334-2044 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE New Faces of Green Mountain Farm-to-School Green Mountain Farm-to-School (GMFTS) welcomed five new AmeriCorps members, one returning AmeriCorps member, [...]