I 
111TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 5456 
To amend the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act to award 
competitive grants to assist eligible entities in implementing or expanding 
farm-to-school programs. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MAY 28, 2010 
Ms. MCCOLLUM (for herself, Mr. SCOTT of Virginia, Mr. LATHAM, Mr. 
ELLISON, Mr. LUJA´N, Mr. KAGEN, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. PUTNAM, Mr. 
MICHAUD, Mr. AL GREEN of Texas, Ms. KAPTUR, Mr. CARNAHAN, Mr. 
MOORE of Kansas, Ms. PINGREE of Maine, Mr. BLUMENAUER, Mr. 
SHULER, Mr. KIND, Mr. LOEBSACK, Mr. VAN
HOLLEN, Ms. 
SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. COURTNEY, Mr. WALZ, Mr. HOLT, Mr. PERRIELLO, 
and Mr. MORAN of Virginia) introduced the following bill; which was re-
ferred to the Committee on Education and Labor, and in addition to the 
Committee on Agriculture, for a period to be subsequently determined by 
the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall with-
in the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To amend the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch 
Act to award competitive grants to assist eligible entities 
in implementing or expanding farm-to-school programs. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘National Farm-to- 
School Act of 2010’’. 
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SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
(1) Farm-to-school programs facilitate the pur-
chase of local food for school meals and offer a spec-
trum of both immediate and long-term benefits to 
child health, small- and medium-sized agricultural 
producer income, and community economic develop-
ment. 
(2) Farm-to-school programs of varying scale 
are operational in over 8,900 schools in 42 States 
around the country. 
(3) Though successful models of farm-to-school 
programs exist around the country, many schools 
and small- and medium-sized agricultural producers 
that would like to implement a farm-to-school pro-
gram or scale up their existing program face bar-
riers in the form of program planning, implementa-
tion, and technical capacity. 
(4) One-third of children in the United States 
are now obese or overweight. Over the past 3 dec-
ades, obesity rates have quadrupled in 6 to 11 year 
olds and tripled in 12 to 19 year olds, according to 
the most recent data from the Centers for Disease 
Control’s National Health and Nutrition Examina-
tion Survey. 
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(5) Childhood obesity rates are disproportion-
ately high among low-income and minority popu-
lations. Among Mexican-American children and ado-
lescents ages 2 to 19, 38 percent are obese or over-
weight. For African-American children, this rate is 
close to 35 percent. A study of American Indian sec-
ond-graders in Arizona, New Mexico and South Da-
kota found that over 20 percent of the children were 
overweight and 29 percent were obese. 
(6) Communities with high levels of poverty 
have less access to fresh fruits and vegetables than 
higher-income communities. A study of nearly 700 
neighborhoods in the United States found that low- 
income areas have access to half as many super-
markets as the wealthiest areas. 
(7) Increased consumption of fresh fruits and 
vegetables is one of six major strategies to prevent 
and control obesity, according to the Centers for 
Disease Control. 
(8) According to survey data from the Depart-
ment of Agriculture, only 2 percent of children na-
tionwide meet the daily food servings as rec-
ommended by the Food Guide Pyramid. 
(9) The national school lunch program estab-
lished under the Richard B. Russell National School 
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Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1751 et seq.) has potential to 
provide fresher and healthier foods to millions of 
children in the United States. Approximately 60 per-
cent of students in the United States are eligible to 
receive free or reduced-price school lunches. In fiscal 
year 2008, 30.9 million children consumed free or 
reduced-price school lunch on a daily basis. 
(10) Farm-to-school programs can increase chil-
dren’s daily intake of fresh fruits and vegetables. 
Farm-to-school programs in Oregon and California 
have demonstrated that children in schools with an 
active farm-to-school program increased their aver-
age consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables by 
one or more servings per day. 
(11) Farm-to-school programs are popular 
among children and can increase school lunch par-
ticipation. Studies of 9 farm-to-school programs 
found that schools that participate in a farm-to- 
school program have seen an increase in student 
participation in the school meal program ranging 
from 3 percent to 16 percent for all meals. 
(12) Farm-to-school programs can benefit 
small- and mid-sized agricultural producers by pro-
viding access to consistent markets and the planning 
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(2) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 
the Secretary of Agriculture unless otherwise speci-
fied. 
SEC. 4. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 
It is the sense of Congress that— 
(1) farm-to-school programs should be recog-
nized as a proven effective strategy that can provide 
immediate and long-term benefits to child health, 
small- and medium-sized agricultural producer in-
come, and community economic development; and 
(2) the Federal Government should partner in 
assisting schools and local educational agencies with 
planning, technical assistance, and implementation 
of farm-to-school programs. 
SEC. 5. PURPOSES. 
The purposes of this Act are to— 
(1) establish the Federal Government as a part-
ner in assisting communities with planning, tech-
nical assistance, and implementation of efficient, 
cost-effective farm-to-school programs; and 
(2) facilitate a sustained commitment to farm- 
to-school procurement in communities by linking 
local small- and medium-sized agricultural pro-
ducers, schools and institutions, State, local and 
tribal government agencies, institutions of higher 
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education, parents, community and tribal organiza-
tions, and other community stakeholders 
TITLE I—COMPETITIVE GRANT 
PROGRAM 
FOR 
FARM-TO- 
SCHOOL PROGRAMS 
SEC. 101. COMPETITIVE GRANT PROGRAM FOR FARM-TO- 
SCHOOL PROGRAMS. 
(a) AMENDMENT.—The Richard B. Russell National 
School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1751 et seq.) is amended 
by inserting after section 19, the following: 
‘‘SEC. 19A. FARM-TO-SCHOOL PROGRAM. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—From the amounts appropriated 
under subsection (l), the Secretary shall provide assist-
ance, through competitive matching grants and technical 
assistance, to eligible entities to implement or expand 
farm-to-school programs, and for related activities. 
‘‘(b) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—For purposes of this sec-
tion, the term ‘eligible entity’ means— 
‘‘(1) a school, including a charter school; 
‘‘(2) a local educational agency; 
‘‘(3) an institution of higher education; 
‘‘(4) a nongovernmental, community-based, or 
tribal organization; 
‘‘(5) a State, regional, local, or tribal govern-
ment agency; or 
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‘‘(6) a partnership consisting of 2 or more of 
the entities described in paragraphs (1) through (5). 
‘‘(c) REGIONAL
BALANCE.—In awarding grants 
under this section, the Secretary, to the maximum extent 
practicable, shall ensure— 
‘‘(1) geographical diversity; and 
‘‘(2) participation of urban, rural, and tribal 
communities. 
‘‘(d) TYPES OF GRANTS.—A grant under this section 
may be— 
‘‘(1) an implementation grant to support the 
initial costs of implementing a new, or expanding an 
existing, farm-to-school program; 
‘‘(2) a training and technical assistance grant 
to support the training and access to resources and 
information necessary to conduct a successful farm- 
to-school program; or 
‘‘(3) a planning grant to support the cost of 
conducting research, identifying resources, and de-
veloping partnerships to design a successful and sus-
tainable farm-to-school program. 
‘‘(e) GRANT AMOUNTS.—A grant awarded under this 
section to an eligible entity shall not exceed— 
‘‘(1) in the case of an implementation or train-
ing and technical assistance grant, $100,000; and 
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‘‘(2) in the case of a planning grant, $25,000. 
‘‘(f) GRANT DURATION.—A grant under this section 
shall be awarded for a period— 
‘‘(1) in the case of an implementation or train-
ing and technical assistance grant, not to exceed 2 
years; and 
‘‘(2) in the case of a planning grant, not to ex-
ceed 1 year. 
‘‘(g) COST SHARING.— 
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—The amount of a grant 
awarded under this section shall not exceed 75 per-
cent of the cost of the activities carried out under 
the grant. 
‘‘(2) NON-FEDERAL SUPPORT.—An eligible en-
tity receiving a grant under this section shall provide 
support of at least 25 percent of the cost of the ac-
tivities carried out under the grant in cash or in- 
kind (including, facilities, equipment, training, or 
services provided by a State, local, and tribal govern-
ments, institutions of higher education, and private 
sources). 
‘‘(h) USE OF FUNDS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—An eligible entity receiving 
a grant under this section shall use such funds to 
implement or expand, make plans to implement or 
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expand, or provide training and technical assistance 
to an eligible entity in accordance with paragraph 
(2) for the purposes of implementing or expanding, 
a farm-to-school program, by— 
‘‘(A) establishing effective relationships 
among— 
‘‘(i) schools and local educational 
agencies; 
‘‘(ii) distributors; and 
‘‘(iii) small- and medium-sized agri-
cultural operations or groups of such oper-
ations; 
‘‘(B) facilitating the development of enter-
prises to minimally process, as defined by the 
Secretary, distribute, aggregate, store, and de-
liver locally or regionally produced agricultural 
food products to support community develop-
ment and the income of small- and medium- 
sized agricultural operations; 
‘‘(C) acquiring appropriate equipment to 
implement or expand a farm-to-school program; 
‘‘(D) developing school fruit and vegetable 
gardens for educational and food production 
purposes; and 
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‘‘(E) supporting training and education ac-
tivities, including supporting the planning of ex-
periential nutrition education activities and cur-
riculum that— 
‘‘(i) promote healthy food education in 
the school curriculum; and 
‘‘(ii) incorporate the participation of 
school children in farm- and garden-based 
agricultural education activities. 
‘‘(2) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE GRANTS.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In the case of an eligi-
ble entity receiving a training and technical as-
sistance grant under this section, the entity 
shall use the funds available under the grant to 
provide training and technical assistance to an 
eligible entity that desires to implement or ex-
pand a farm-to-school program. 
‘‘(B) TRAINING AND TECHNICAL ASSIST-
ANCE ACTIVITIES.—The training and technical 
assistance shall— 
‘‘(i) be provided under such terms as 
the Secretary may require; and 
‘‘(ii) include supporting the training 
and access to resources and information 
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