Sec. 105. Encouraging locally and regionally grown and raised food
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The Secretary of Agriculture (in this section referred to as the Secretary ) may permit each school food authority with a low annual commodity entitlement value, as determined by the Secretary, to elect to substitute locally and regionally grown and raised food for the authority’s allotment, in whole or in part, of commodity assistance under section 6(b) of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act ( 42 U.S.C. 1755(b) ) for the school lunch program under such Act, if— the election is requested by the school food authority; the Secretary determines that the election will reduce State and Federal administrative costs, such as costs related to transportation, technology, and overhead; and the election will provide the school food authority with greater flexibility to purchase locally and regionally grown and raised foods.
The Secretary of Agriculture may establish and carry out farm-to-school demonstration programs under which school food authorities, agricultural producers producing for local and regional markets, and other farm to school stakeholders will collaborate with the Agriculture Marketing Service to source food for the school lunch program under the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1751 et seq.) from local farmers and ranchers in lieu of the commodity assistance provided under section 6(b) of the Richard B.
Russell National School Lunch Act ( 42 U.S.C. 1755(b) ) to such school food authorities for the school lunch program. A demonstration program carried out under this subsection shall— facilitate and increase the purchase of unprocessed and minimally processed locally and regionally grown and raised agricultural products to be served under the school lunch program; test methods to improve procurement, transportation, and meal preparation processes; assess whether administrative costs can be saved through increased school authority flexibility to source locally and regionally produced foods; and undertake rigorous evaluation and share information about results, including cost savings, with the Department of Agriculture, other school food authorities, agricultural producers producing for the local and regional market, and the general public.
The Secretary shall require demonstration program participants to provide to the Secretary detailed plans with respect to how the participants will meet the requirements of this subsection. The Secretary shall conduct each demonstration program under this subsection for not less than 3 school years and not more than 5 years, except in the case of a demonstration program that requires additional time to meet the requirements under paragraph (2)(A), as determined by the Secretary.
The Secretary shall coordinate among relevant agencies of the Department of Agriculture and non-governmental organizations with appropriate expertise to facilitate the provision of training and technical assistance necessary to the successful implementation of demonstration programs under this subsection. The Secretary shall carry out at least 10 demonstration programs under this subsection. In carrying out demonstration programs under this subsection, the Secretary shall, to the maximum extent practicable, ensure— geographical diversity; that at least half of the demonstration programs are completed in collaboration with school food authorities with small annual commodity entitlements, as determined by the Secretary; that at least half of the demonstration programs are completed in rural or tribal communities; and equitable treatment of school food authorities with a high percentage of students eligible for free or reduced price lunches under the Richard B.
Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1751 et seq.). With respect to each demonstration program carried out under this subsection, the Secretary shall ensure that participants of the demonstration program collect data on how the program met the requirements of paragraph (2)(A) in a manner that will enable the aggregation and analysis of such data. Not later than January 1, 2018, the Secretary shall provide to the Committee on Agriculture of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate, and a report on the demonstration programs carried out under this subsection, including— an analysis of the data collected under paragraph (7); a summary of the efforts of the Department of Agriculture to increase the availability and use of locally and regionally grown foods by school food authorities through the commodity assistance provided to such authorities under section under section 6(b) of the Richard B.
Russell National School Lunch Act ( 42 U.S.C. 1755(b) ); and a determination of whether a demonstration program carried out under this section or any aspect of such a program should become an option for school food authorities based on outcomes, such as children’s nutritional health status, economic benefits to participating agricultural producers and the local economy, school meal participation rates, and an all-inclusive comparison of administrative cost of the commodity assistance described in subparagraph
(B)and such demonstration program.
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