Phase one of a $10 million “Farm-to-School” initiative program begins in Pittsburg. Community Green Farms is partnering with Leafy Green Farms to provide ten hydroponic farms to ten schools in southeast Kansas. Typically, food travels 1,500 miles from a farm to your plate. But Leafy Green Farms is known as “hyper-organic,” which means it can be grown locally and consumed within 100 miles. The food grown in the hydroponic farms will be used for school meals.
“Leafy Green Farms started with the idea of moving the nutritional needle here in southeast Kansas. We don’t believe that income should dictate nutritional levels, especially for children. So we started our proof of concept farm at Pittsburg High School to show that farms can be in rural areas where children can start growing food year-round and provide better nutrition for the entire community,” said Brad Fourby, Founder of Leafy Green Farm.
“Then, once we’ve identified the qualifying schools in the area, we reach out to them and ask them to enter into a system and apply for a grant. Through our foundation, we can then help them get a grant so they can get a farm on the property,” said Jim Raver, President of the Board at Community Green Farms.
Once Leafy Green Farms reaches a goal of ten local schools, they will move on to implementing the program in all 105 counties in the Sunflower State. The project is typically funded through grant programs.
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