(Pictured Above: Salad bar at North Country High School featuring Watermelon radishes from Deep Root Organic, mixed beets and shoots from Pete’s Greens, and Hood cottage cheese.) The Local Food for Schools Program (LFS), launched by the [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]
Food Service Director Bob Hildebrand holds local spinach (a Harvest of the Month product) grown at Joe’s Brook Farm and sourced through Green Mountain Farm Direct. June 13th, 2023 Green Mountain Farm-to-School Contact: Becca Perrin Food Hub [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]
This maple season, students in our Farm-to-School programs had lots of fun learning about maple sugaring and incorporating local syrup into recipes they prepared in the classroom. Many also attended field trips to local maple sugar houses [...]
March 13th, 2023We had a great time at the NEK Chef, Farmer & Food Producer Networking Event that we organized in collaboration with Vermont Fresh Network (VFN). More than 40 people turned up to enjoy beer, pizza, [...]
How has Vermont agriculture changed and remained the same over time? How has agriculture changed the landscape of Vermont? Who has changed agriculture and the landscape? These are the guiding questions in our Farm-to-School "VT Agriculture: Pieces [...]
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 [...]
What is food sovereignty? "According to the International Movement on Food Sovereignty, the term food sovereignty means 'the right of peoples to healthy and culturally-appropriate food produced through ecologically sound and sustainable methods, and their right to [...]
Farm Field Trips offer a unique opportunity for both students and farmers to build connections in the Northeast Kingdom. Students have a chance to get out of the classroom and into nature, while learning about where their [...]
GMFTS is a founding member of Vermont Way Foods (VWF), a collaboration that began in 2020 in an effort to expand market access for Vermont farmers and producers. VWF's launch of a certified organic (VOF) produce line [...]
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. [...]
Started by Paul Lisai in 2012, Sweet Rowen Farmstead is a family owned and operated dairy farm located in West Glover, VT. The Sweet Rowen mission is to "maintain a working landscape that provides families with fresh [...]
Last year, a GMFTS AmeriCorps member applied for a Seed Grant from New England Grassroots Environment Fund and successfully secured funding to help Charleston Elementary School purchase a Grow Lab, garden supplies, and materials for a new [...]
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 [...]
Green Mountain Farm to School organized a field trip for Irasburg students to the Nulhegan Education and Cultural Center in Holland on Wednesday, March 30. Students learned about the Abenaki culture and were able to participate in [...]
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 [...]
Click here to read our Fall newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/0e272160a11b/gmfts-spring-newsletter-4876338?e=ff5f03a9f2
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 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 [...]
Read our Spring Newsletter here: https://mailchi.mp/38d3315b8236/gmfts-spring-newsletter-4811866?e=9afbbebcf6
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, [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]
By Esmé Forbes, AmeriCorps Farm to School Coordinaor Map of Abenaki Tribes in the NortheastSource: http://abenakiart.org/yahoo_site_admin/assets/docs/Grades_3_to_5_-_Study_Guide_-_Alnobak.95203501.pdf Green Mountain Farm-to-Schools programs operate throughout the Northeast Kingdom. This is the ancestral and current homeland of the Nulhegan Band of [...]
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 (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 and the "neighbors to neighbors" task force at the weekly Craftsbury & Albany Food Share. Photo Courtesy of Karen Gowen Photography. CRAFTSBURY, VT Contact: Catherine Cusack, Executive Director October 8, 2020 The Green Mountain [...]
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, [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]
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, 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 [...]
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-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 [...]
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 [...]
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, [...]
Online sales for the raffle are now closed! Tickets may be purchased in-person at the 12th Annual Taste of the Kingdom until 8pm
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 [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]
August 28, 2019 - NEWPORT, VT Between June 19th and August 15th, the Lunchbox food truck, a free summer meal site, served 3,219 free meals to kids and teens and sold 583 adult meals to community members [...]
Thanks for your interest in our Farm to School Conference! We are postponing this year's conference to a later date. Please stay tuned for more details!
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 [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]
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. [...]
NEWPORT, VT - May 9, 2019 On April 30, Green Mountain Farm-to-School ended its fourth year of operating the Fresh Fruit & Vegetables Coupon Program, distributing $70,000 worth of coupons for fresh produce to residents of Essex [...]
Don’t see a level that works for you? No worries, give what you can, and we’ll be sure to put it to good use! Click here to give
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 [...]
Farm to school programs at GMFTS focuses on experiential, hands-on learning that reaches across the cafeteria, classroom, and community. To learn more about why farm field trips are an important piece of this equation, we sat down [...]
Green Mountain Farm to School is pleased to share our 2017-2018 Annual Report with our community. Read the full report here.
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 [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]
Enter the Green Mountain Farm-to-School raffle for your chance to win a 2-night stay for 4 people in a Hotel Jay Suite – Lift Tickets, Waterpark, and Climb Time included! To purchase raffle tickets online, click the donate [...]
In 2013, lunchtime at Irasburg Village School (IVS) looked a lot different than it does today. Uneaten food and kitchen scraps went straight into trash cans, then on to landfills. The need for a composting program was [...]
NEWPORT, VT- October, 31, 2018 On Thursday, October 18th, an unseasonably cold day, 37 members of our community gathered for Green Mountain Farm-to-School’s 2018 Fall On-Farm Community Dinner at Morningstar Farm in Glover, Vermont. The event was [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]
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 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 [...]
For its tenth consecutive year, Green Mountain Farm-to-School will host Harvest Festivals with 11 Northeast Kingdom schools in celebration of local food, agriculture and healthy communities. Harvest Festivals are an opportunity for the community to gather around [...]
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 [...]
In October 2017, we convened with staff and our board of directors to develop a robust strategic plan to guide our work in the coming four years. With this plan in hand, our organization strives towards achieving [...]
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 20th, the Lunchbox will be serving 10 weeks of free meals to [...]
Family owned since 1828, owner-operator Allen Hall of Hall’s Orchards, grows and harvests apples and pears in Isle La Motte. Hall has worked with Green Mountain Farm Direct (GMFD), Green Mountain Farm-to-School’s mission-driven food-hub, since 2014. “I’ve [...]
Craftsbury Outdoor Center presents the "Hill Farmstead Half" - a point to point trail and dirt road half marathon from the Craftsbury Outdoor Center to Hill Farmstead Brewery. Race entries raise money for Green Mountain Farm to School's mission to strengthen local [...]
Green Mountain Farm-to-School works with an average of 3,000 students each year, connecting students to food through school gardens, farm field trips, taste tests, and hands-on education. Our Farm-to-School Coordinators work with over half of the [...]
Celebrating 10 years of Green Mountain Farm-to-School Cultivating healthy communities since 2008 2018 marks Green Mountain Farm-to-School’s 10-year anniversary. Over the past decade, GMFTS and our partners have worked together to increase access to local, healthy food [...]
Join us in celebrating 10 years of Green Mountain Farm-to-School during our first ever Giving Day on June 1st! Every gift received by June 1st will be doubled, up to $10,000. In just 10 years, GMFTS has [...]
During the long winter months, AmeriCorps Farm-to-School Coordinators are hard at work implementing programming in partner schools despite the snow.
Learn more about the AmeriCorps Farm-to-School Coordinators who serve here at Green Mountain Farm-to-School.
Green Mountain Farm-to-School (GMFTS), in partnership with the national non-profit, Wholesome Wave, is making fresh fruits and vegetables more accessible to low-income residents of Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom through the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Coupon Program.
Enter the Green Mountain Farm-to-School raffle for your chance to win a 2-night stay for 4 people in a Hotel Jay Suite – Lift Tickets, Waterpark, and Climb Time included! HOW TO ENTER THE RAFFLE: Raffle tickets are $5/ticket. Tickets [...]
Green Mountain Farm-to-School (GMFTS) is pleased to welcome three new talented individuals to their staff – Sophie Westover, Jeyna Diallo, and Nick Chmura. Read More...
It’s an August day, 2017, and the children of the Northeast Kingdom(NEK) are enjoying the summer break from school. This particular day happens to be Friday, so The Lunchbox, the food truck of Green Mountain [...]
October is National Farm to School month and Green Mountain Farm to School (GMFTS) is gearing up! Activities and celebrations are taking place in schools across the state, as Governor Scott signed a declaration on October 2nd [...]
Vermont has a wealth of farm fresh foods, yet access to affordable, local produce is often not viable for some residents of the Northeast Kingdom (NEK). Low-income individuals and families who depend on 3squaresVT need their food [...]
The 4th Annual Summer Block Party will be held at Gardner Park in Newport, Vt. on Thursday, June 22 from 3 PM to 6 PM. The event is free and open to the public. The afternoon will feature free food for all kids 18-years-old and younger from the Lunchbox food truck, family-friendly games and activities such as dancing and face painting, and a fun-run around the park. The Summer Block Party is hosted by Green Mountain Farm-to-School and Newport Parks and Recreation. Read More...
The Lunchbox food truck will be on the road again for its fifth summer, serving up free meals to kids and fresh, local lunches for three communities in the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont. For many kids who participate in free or reduced lunch programs during the school year, the free summer meal is one of their best sources for nutritious food while school is on break. For community members, the Lunchbox is a fresh, local, and delicious lunch option that comes with an added perk - all the proceeds from lunch sales go directly to running the free summer meal program and help to serve even more children. Read More...
Green Mountain Farm Direct, a food hub run by Green Mountain Farm-to-School, is working to connect local farmers with schools, restaurants, and institutions across northern Vermont to increase the farm’s sales and boost consumption of local food in institutions and the overall region. Those partnerships have created a distribution infrastructure in the region that has helped to improve the community’s access to healthy, local food while also growing the local economy. Watch the video...
Green Mountain Farm-to-School is pleased to welcome two new talented individuals to their staff - Edifice Jengo and Kendall Lambert. Read More...
Guests from throughout the Northeast Kingdom and Canada enjoyed a delicious evening at Jay Peak Resort this past February during Green Mountain Farm-to-School’s 9th Annual Taste of the Kingdom - an event celebrating the vibrant food scene of the Northeast Kingdom. Read More...
School cafeterias across Northern Vermont are closing the food cycle as they lead the way in diverting food scraps from landfills through composting. More than 10 Northeast Kingdom elementary schools that work with Green Mountain Farm-to-School. Read More...
More than 1,400 pounds of parsnips were delivered across northern Vermont in the beginning of January as schools and businesses prepared to celebrate the Vermont Harvest of the Month - a state-wide education campaign which celebrates a different seasonal and local Vermont product each month. Read More...