The Center for Integrated Agricultural Systems partnered with Transform Wisconsin (TWi) to provide farm to school training and technical assistance to fourteen Transformation and Healthy Food System Grantees. Throughout the TWi grant program, CIAS provided one-on-one technical assistance to grantees, as well as developed resources and guides to support the work of these county-level farm to school and food system projects.

Through a special partnership with The Food Trust, located in Philadelphia, the Marketing Healthy Foods in Wisconsin K-12 Schools guide was developed. This is a comprehensive resource on conventional and innovative marketing practices to support the consumption of healthy foods and farm to school programs. The guide also includes the Healthy Food and Farm to School Marketing Self Assessment to help school districts and farm to school programs determine areas of success and improvement. These documents provide a one-stop shop for all of your cafeteria, school, district and community promotions of healthy foods in the school environment.

In February 2015, Deb Bentzel and Kelsey Porter of The Food Trust conducted two in-person trainings titled Marketing Matters, targeted to child nutrition directors and farm to school advocates and hosted in Madison and Green Bay. The trainings are based on the Marketing Healthy Foods resource, and are divided into three sections. The trainings are now available online, and include the in-person training content and presenter slide deck.

Marketing Matters Training Videos
Part 1: It’s all about the food
Part 2: Smarter Lunchroom basics
Part 3: Farm to School Marketing