Annual Conference
Conference Session
2018-11-11
"Farm to Cafeteria: Bid Resources and the Next Generation of Local Procurement"Key Areas: Operations
Session: Session G - Sunday, November 11th: 9:15 a.m. - 10:15 a.m. - Seaside S-7
Speaker(s): Ben Thomas - Farm to Cafeteria Senior Program Manager, Community Alliance with Family Farmers
Nora Stewart - Program Manager, Farm to Institution Center, Community Health Improvement Partners
Carissa Iwamoto, MBA, RDN, SNS - Director of Child Nutrition Services, Fallbrook Union ESD
Bob Knight - Founder, Old Grove Orange
Objectives: The objective of this session is to engage Food Service Directors on the impact of farm to school, the new CAFF Bid Toolkit, finding local farmers and vendors through the new Good Food Marketplace and regional Good Food Showcases, and to provide updates on innovative procurement and Student Engagement practices at school districts throughout California.
Description: Participants will learn and share innovative practices and opportunities from throughout California leveraging farm to cafeteria programs to bring students the highest quality, most diverse local fruits and vegetables from local farmers. Learn about a new Bid Toolkit for procuring produce and how you can find local and sustainable vendors through the Good Food Marketplace. Join farm to cafeteria practitioners for a third installment of Farm to School Procurement Sessions at the CSNA Annual Conference.
Speaker Bio(s):
Ben Thomas - Community Alliance with Family Farmers
Speaker Bio:
Ben oversees CAFF's Farm to Cafeteria program, which facilitates sales between farmers and institutions, such as hospitals and schools. Ben has worked with college and university sustainable food procurement and education since 2009 and joined CAFF after managing the sustainable food program at UC Davis Dining Services.
Nora Stewart - Community Health Improvement Partners
Speaker Bio:
As the Food Systems Manager at Community Health Improvement Partners (CHIP), Nora works with
schools, hospitals, produce distributors, local farmers and other key stakeholders to increase the
availability of healthy, local food across San Diego County.
schools, hospitals, produce distributors, local farmers and other key stakeholders to increase the
availability of healthy, local food across San Diego County.
Carissa Iwamoto, MBA, RDN, SNS - Fallbrook Union ESD
Speaker Bio:
Carissa is a registered dietitian working with the Fallbrook Union Elementary School District. She has continued the great work in Fallbrook, partnering with local producers and educating the community about good food.
Bob Knight - Old Grove Orange
Speaker Bio:
Bob Knight is a farm2school pioneer, growing fruits and vegetables specifically for school meal programs since 2005 on his 87-acre farm in Redlands, CA.
Upcoming CSNA Events
November 13-16, 202472nd Annual Conference
April 6-8, 2025
Legislative Action Conference
May 4-6, 2025
Child Nutrition & Industry Summit
