A Seasonal Celebration of Local Fruits & Veggies
Illinois Harvest of the Month helps child feeding, garden and education sites grow or source, and celebrate seasonal, local food. Each month, registered participants highlight a different local item on their cafeteria menus or in their school gardens. This free program provides resources for education, menu planning, taste tests and best practices to sites across Illinois!
We help local farmers in Illinois connect to institutional buyers to share educational opportunities for pre-k to grade 12, build lasting relationships and increase sales in the local food marketplace.
Illinois Harvest of the Month brings more money to local farmers, healthier food to the cafeteria, and educational opportunities for students about healthy eating reconnecting them to the food they eat. This is a free program!
Click here to view the seasonal Harvest of the Month calendar.
Helpful Tools to Grow Farm to School
When participants request a password for Illinois Harvest of the Month, they receive a suite of food service, early childcare and home recipes, classroom activities, a tasting toolkit and marketing materials. Sites can also use the Extension Kit that allow grocery stores and the community to participate in Harvest of the Month. It’s a great way to take your farm to school program to the next level.
Local Sourcing Made Easy
The Illinois Farm to School Network is partnering with IL Market Maker to help increase the availability of local items through Illinois producers and processors. Participating site managers can request one-on-one technical assistance from the Illinois Farm to School Network (at no cost) if they would like to build direct relationships with local producers, or locate a distributor with local food access.