The Seattle Farm to Preschool Program brings sustainably grown foods from local farmers to local preschools to improve access to nourishing food and cultivate an equitable food system.
Program Components
Food Procurement
Participating preschools are provided with stipends to purchase local fruits and veggies, dairy, proteins, grains, and more for students’ meals and snacks through an online marketplace hosted by our partner, Farmstand Local Foods. 100% of this food comes from Washington State producers (many within 50 miles of Seattle), and procurement sales support over 70 small-acreage farms and ranches committed to practices that sustain and regenerate our planet’s health.
Nutrition Education
To strengthen the learning environment, we offer nutrition and gardening education through partnerships with Tilth Alliance, Solid Ground, and Lifelong. Virtual and in-person classes help children learn about soil and plants, explore flavors, and practice cooking. Family events, like our pop-up farm stands, extend the Farm to Preschool experience from school to home, and field trip opportunities to local farms offer hands-on learning that helps children understand where their food comes from. We support preschool staff through trainings and resource kits that empower them to incorporate farm-to-preschool concepts into daily classroom activities.
Family Food Bags
We collaborate with Tilth Alliance, Pacific Coast Harvest, Pike Place Market, and FamilyWorks to provide weekly bags of seasonal produce for preschool families. Our partners prioritize sourcing from BIPOC, immigrant, refugee, and women farmers, and they deliver more than 30,000 family food bags each year.
Explore our Ecosystem of Change to learn how these components come together to create impact for preschools, families, and farmers.
Feedback from participants:
“We ordered purple potatoes a while back and some of them started growing eyes so we planted them in our garden. On Monday the kids and I harvested them, and we received an abundance of potatoes! They had so much fun digging them up like they were buried treasure. Thank you for the work that you do. It’s appreciated and making ripple effects in our community.”
— Diedra Barlow, Program Director
Program Partners
Farm to Preschool is a community partnership supported by funding from the City of Seattle Sweetened Beverage Tax.
Farm to Preschool in action!
