Green Mountain Farm-to-School (GMFTS) is a leader in the growing farm-to-school movement in Vermont. Our mission is to strengthen local food systems in Vermont by promoting positive economic relationships, education, and access between schools, farms, and communities.
We create and sustain healthy communities by working across the food system with capacity building, resource development, and technical assistance through our Farm-to-School program, Farm Direct food hub, and Lunchbox food truck.
Our Programs
Thank you to our 2025 premier sponsors – The Abbey Group and Community National Bank!
Our work is made possible because of a network of businesses, institutions, organizations and community members who are in partnership with us.
You can view all our supporters here. Interested in becoming a sponsor? Please contact Catherine at ccusack@gmfts.org
Follow Our Story
Last week, we had so much fun with the pre-K students from Jay Westfield Joint Elementary School! Together, we explored the life of a pumpkin through a story — learning about its parts, how it grows, and even acting out its life cycle — before getting creative with some pumpkin painting! 🎃🎨
This fall, Derby Elementary School students used their senses, strength, and creativity to explore where food comes from — and how to make it! Second and fourth graders put the school garden to bed for winter, kindergarteners learned about cows and churned butter, and students across the school enjoyed Harvest of the Month taste tests. 🐮🧈🌱🍎
Last Wednesday, our team gathered at our Newport office to connect, celebrate, and send off our colleague, Becca Perrin, as she embarks on a new chapter. 💚 Over the past 4+ years with GMFTS, Becca has been a true champion of local food access for all Vermont students, helping to grow the farm-to-school movement through her dedication, relationship-building, and advocacy. We’re so grateful for her contributions to our organization, and look forward to collaborating with her in her new role at NOFA-VT!
We also had some fun together — a big thank you to Hilary Elmer for generously sharing her time, talent, and supplies to lead a mozzarella-making workshop, and to Burtt’s Apple Orchard for donating pumpkins for our pumpkin carving activity! 🎃🧀
Lastly, we’re hiring! Check out our website for details on our open Food Hub Account Manager position.
Our after-school Cooking Club at Brownington Central School is on a roll, preparing weekly meals for the Orleans Food Shelf!
These students have really upped their game over these past two weeks, making cheese ravioli FROM SCRATCH featuring butternut squash grown in our school gardens! To make the pasta, we practiced different techniques, with and without using fancy equipment, which was super fun and messy!
The following week, we made a creamy kale and sausage soup, featuring local kale gleaned by Salvation Farms, and a garlic knot to round it all out. The soup came out so good, and there was so much extra, that we just had to share it with some of the other teachers and students!
Last weekend, our three AmeriCorps members attended the ABCs of Farm-Based Education at @shelburnefarms. Over the course of four days, they shared and gained new games and activities to enhance programming, learned from Shelburne Farms education staff, all while connecting and collaborating with other Farm-Based educators from around the state and country! Thank you to Shelburne Farms for sharing your beautiful campus space and continuing to strive for a more sustainable future through education!
This fall, Lowell Graded Schooll’s After School Fall Garden Club has been having fun harvesting in the garden and preparing it for the winter! We learned about crops that can be harvested in the fall like corn and potatoes. Up next, we’ll be learning about turning the soil and putting down hay mulch for the winter.
Last Tuesday, we put the school garden to bed for the winter at Barton Graded. Kindergarten, first grade, and fourth grade helped us harvest cabbage and squash, clear the beds, and plant garlic for the spring! We learned about seasons and how they affect what we can grow. Thank you to all the teachers and staff at Barton who make these workshops possible!
Our Cooking Club is off to a great start at Brownington Central School, where middle-school students are preparing meals for the Orleans Food Shelf Orleans Federated Church.🍽️
During the first two weeks of the program, we practiced knife skills, learned how to convert measurements, and thought about seasonality and all the different ways to prepare vegetables.
So far, these students have prepared 40 healthy, delicious meals to give back to their community, including a vegetable stir-fry with brown rice, summer squash casserole, and coleslaw. Each meal features local produce gleaned by @salvationfarmsvt
