Farm to Early Care

October is Farm to School and Early Care Month!

Farm to School and Farm to Early Care initiatives focus on three main tenets: local purchasing, gardening, and food and agriculture education.  

Farm to Early Care in Minnesota: Connecting our Littlest Eaters with Fresh Local Foods

Farm to Early Care initiatives connect young children with nutritious, locally grown foods and support farmers in their communities.

Serving traditional Hmong foods in early care meals with the CACFP/Food Program

Download a PDF of this handout.

Hmong foods and CACFP recipe collection

Our cohort of Hmong early care providers shared feedback to identify challenges and opportunities to participate in the federal Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP, also known as “the Food Program”), which provides reimbursement to participating providers for every meal they serve.

Big wins for Farm to School & Early Care in Minnesota

Minnesota’s legislative session ended in May, and stakeholders are celebrating big wins for Farm to School and Early Care.

2023 Farm to School and Early Care Bill Continues Positive Momentum in Minnesota

St. Paul, Minnesota—The Minnesota House Agriculture Committee will have a hearing today for Representative Kristi Pursell’s Farm to School and Early Care bill (H.F. 2043), with bipartisan support representing a step forward in supporting local food, schools and economies throughout Minnesota.

Planting the Seeds: A Farm to in-home Early Care Pilot Case Study

Building on a long-standing partnership and a bedrock vision of a truly community-based food system, in 2020 the Hmong American Farmers Association (HAFA) and the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP) launched a new Farm to in-home Early Care initiative on the East side of St. Paul.

Nutritious foods and cultural connections

The Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP) has supported Farm to School and Farm to Early Care efforts in Minnesota for over a decade and for much of this time has partnered with the Hmong American Farmers Association (HAFA).

A decade of Farm to Institution efforts

For over a decade, IATP has been a leader in the Farm to Institution movement. With the goal of supporting the vitality of small- and mid-size farmers, we find innovative approaches to increase the accessibility of locally-grown foods in settings like schools and hospitals.

Families First Head Start Program Community Action Council

Download a PDF of the case study. Families First Head Start Program is comprised of 3 centers: The Place and The Empowerment Center in Rochester with food prepared in the kitchen at the Place, and the Brookside Education Center in Albert Lea, with food prepared on-site.