Sweetwater Union High School Farm to School Program

The following description is a summary of our farm to school plan funded by a 2014 USDA Farm to School Program grant: Sweetwater Union High School serves over 41,000 students in grades 7-12 across four cities in San Diego County. Over 90% of students represent an ethnic minority, and over 55% of students are eligible for free or reduced lunch programs. With other one-third of students overweight or obese, we are in severe need of improving our school nutrition programs. Much work has already begun to incorporate local products in our breakfast and lunch menus, and to teach students where their food comes from. We have conducted significant community outreach and have partnered with several local farms to begin farm to school activities in our District. The response from students and administration officials has been very supportive of our efforts thus far. We are well poised to connect the existing efforts of several schools and to provide resources for further expansion throughout the district.