Douglas Fisher, New Jersey's secretary of agriculture, has announced that registration has begun for farmers wishing to participate in the Jersey Fresh Farm to School Farmer Recognition Award.

The program is an opportunity for farmers to highlight their farm-to-school efforts and provide them with resources to help feature their Jersey Fresh produce in local school meals.

“The Farmer Recognition Award highlights farmers that are involved in the Jersey Fresh Farm to School program,” Fisher says. “When students and staff from a school visit a farm, or meet with a farmer at school, it allows them to have a better understanding of how food is grown along with the importance of having healthy eating habits that can benefit them for a lifetime.”

Farmers can register for the 2019 Jersey Fresh Farm to School Farmer Recognition Award Program at farmtoschool.nj.gov. The deadline to submit the application is March 15.

Participating farms will receive a Jersey Fresh Farm to School promotional materials kit, which includes a Jersey Fresh Farm to School banner, hats, aprons, seasonality charts and stickers. One farm will be presented as the winner of the 2019 Farm to School Farmer Recognition Award during Jersey Fresh Farm to School Week in 2019.

Farm-to-school programs provide hands-on, experiential learning opportunities to help students learn about local agriculture, how food grows, and what it means to eat healthy with fresh fruits and vegetables.

Farm-to-school activities can include, but are not exclusive to:

• School visits to a farm or from a farmer that teach students how food is grown

• Harvest meals serving locally sourced products from New Jersey farms

• School garden education that ties directly into what is already being taught in the classroom

• Local produce taste tests in schools

Source: New Jersey Department of Agriculture