TA Awarded Local Food Incentive Baseline Grant
May 04, 2026
Serving locally sourced Vermont foods in the Panther Café is becoming more of a reality. In February 2026, Thetford Academy was awarded the Vermont AOE Child Nutrition Programs Local Food Incentive Baseline Grant in the amount of $4,518.54. This funding serves as a catalyst to expand efforts to purchase and incorporate more local foods into the school nutrition program. Local purchasing supports our Vermont economy, puts healthier ingredients in the cafe, and reduces greenhouse gas emissions from food travel.
The Farm to School Team—which includes Sean Meghegan (School Nutrition Manager), Kate Reimanis (Garden Coordinator), Gretchen Czaja (PE & Health), and Kim Cook (Kitchen Assistant)—has been actively working to source locally grown and produced foods for the program. Kate collaborates with students in the school garden to plan, grow, and harvest crops that can be incorporated into the salad bar and hot lunch items, as well as taste-tests prepared by Culinary Arts students. Surplus vegetables are donated to the Thetford Food Shelf.
In addition to these ultra-local options from the school garden, Thetford Academy produces a majority of its own maple syrup through the Outdoor Education Program led by Scott Ellis. Students play an active role in the tapping, collection, and boiling processes, fostering a meaningful connection between hands-on learning and food production.
The team also partners with Food Connects, a local food hub based in Brattleboro, VT, to source a variety of Vermont-made products. These include True North Granola (Brattleboro), Montshire ground beef sourced from regional Vermont farms, fresh apples from Green Mountain Orchards and Burt’s Apple Orchard (Cabot), yogurt from Kingdom Creamery of Vermont, Vermont Soy Tofu (Hardwick), Vermont Bean Crafters Black Bean Burger (Warren), and pizza crusts from Slice of Vermont (Williston).
Additional Vermont-made products currently being used in the program include a variety of dairy products and cheeses from Cabot Creamery, further strengthening the school’s commitment to supporting Vermont agriculture and businesses.