We work hard to make the connections between farmer and food service provider a little bit easier, and to get kids excited about the experience of eating food from CT Farms. Below you will find a selection of products that we have put together with support and advice from farmers, educators, and food service providers.
Early Care Education Seasonal Posters
The Put Local on Your Tray Early Care Education seasonal poster includes 5 posters, one for each season, and an additional poster for year-round. These posters are designed to be used in Early Care Education centers to promote and educate Farm to Early Care and eating seasonally. Each poster shows the foods that are typically available during each season, and they each incorporate English and Spanish.
Put Local on Your Tray K-12 Poster Set
The Put Local on Your Tray K-12 product set includes 12 posters, each of which features different local foods, or groups of local foods. The product posters are designed to be used in school cafeterias to promote and educate about farm to school and local procurement. Each poster incorporates English and Spanish. The products included in the set are: Corn, Berries, Apples and pears, Beans, Dairy, Butternut squash, Beets and carrots, Summer trio: tomato, bell pepper, eggplant, Summer squash: zucchini, yellow squash, cucumbers, Potatoes, Mixed greens, Super greens: kale, spinach, and Swiss Chard
Put Local on Your Tray Recipe and Resource Guide
UConn Extension’s Put Local on Your Tray Program has spent years learning from school food directors, farmers, and farm-to-school advocates. We’ve gathered a wealth of knowledge, including recipes, meal preparation ideas, seasoning tips, and best practices for showcasing CT-Grown items on cafeteria service lines. This guide highlights our findings, features recipes from Connecticut school food services along with key considerations and culturally relevant adaptations. It is designed to help school food directors integrate locally grown products while complying with USDA school meal pattern requirements. The resources we share can help you incorporate seasonal, cultural and logistical information into your farm to school food service program.
If you would like to download the recipe book for free, you can fill out the form here to get access the downloadable pdf.
Direct from the Farm Purchasing Toolkit
Use this Toolkit to:
Learn the elements of and differences between micro purchasing and small purchasing.
Learn how to find and connect with local farms and conversation starter recommendations.
Answers to frequently asked questions and testimonials.
Access templates for creating an invoice system and recording transactions in a procurement log.
If you would like a printed version of this guide, please reach out to abigail.dubois@uconn.edu.