The Farm to School Act of 2023 expands and reauthorizes the federal farm to school program, which helps schools and other institutions source food from local farmers and ranchers while incorporating agricultural education into their operations. The bill broadens eligible recipients beyond traditional schools to include land-grant universities, colleges, and early childhood programs, and increases annual federal funding from five million to ten million dollars for the 2024-2029 period. It allows grants of up to five hundred thousand dollars per award lasting up to three years, and expands the types of projects that can be funded to include innovative approaches to food aggregation, processing, transportation, and distribution. The legislation also provides flexibility for Tribal agencies and socially disadvantaged farmers by allowing them to waive matching fund requirements and use certain federal benefits to meet local cost-sharing obligations. Additionally, the bill requires the Department of Agriculture to conduct a comprehensive review within one year and every three years thereafter to identify and eliminate regulatory and financial barriers that prevent communities from participating in farm to school programs.
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