Full Press Release

The Henry P. Kendall Foundation’s 2024 New England Food Vision Prize
Awards More Than $1.2 Million to Support Local Foods in Local Schools

Boston, Massachusetts, October 25, 2024 – The Henry P. Kendall Foundation is pleased to announce the winners of the 2024 New England Food Vision Prize, a multi-year commitment to build resilience, relationships, and capacity within New England’s regional food system.  

Launched in 2018, the New England Food Vision Prize awards funding to collaborative projects that address challenges related to sourcing and serving local produce, fish, meat, dairy, and grains at educational institutions across New England. Winning Prize projects connect public school districts and higher education institutions with farmers, distributors, fishermen, food hubs, and other stakeholders that are aligned with the goal of producing at least 30% of the region’s food by 2030. 

2024 Prize awards totaling $1.2 million will support nine projects from five New England states. Collectively these projects will reach over 150,000 students in 219 schools.

Andy Kendall, Executive Director of the Henry P. Kendall Foundation, says, “It is an honor to support transformative leaders in their pursuit of a stronger New England food system. More regional food on campus and district menus translates into stronger supply chains, more resilient growers and distributors, and more knowledgeable students who will be tomorrow’s consumers. Congratulations to all Prize-winning teams!”

The 2024 New England Food Vision Prize winners:

Building Capacity to Manufacture Upcycled Nutritious Grain Cereals and Snacks for College Students throughout New England: Skowhegan Economic Development Corporation (ME) was awarded $200,000 to support their partnership with Maine Grains, the University of Maine (UMS) system, and Sodexo’s Maine Course. The University system and Sodexo are looking for healthy, ready to eat local grain-based foods for their menus. Equipment financed by this Prize will allow Maine Grains to turn local milling, cheesemaking, seaweed, blueberry, and soy byproducts into high fiber, high protein packaged goods for sale to schools. 

Creating Culturally Connected Cafeterias in the Manchester, NH School District: New Hampshire Farm to School (NH), an initiative of the University of New Hampshire Sustainability Institute, was awarded $85,894 to develop a partnership with the Manchester School Food Service Department, Food Connects, and Fresh Start Farms. Together, they will launch a two-year project to develop culturally connected school meals and increase local sourcing through training of school food service staff, engagement with students as meal ambassadors, and relationships with two food hubs, Food Connects and Fresh Start Farms, a program of the Organization for Refugee and Immigrant Success (ORIS).

Intervale Food Hub Expanding Institutional Markets:  Intervale Center, Inc. (VT) was awarded $150,000 to increase purchasing by local colleges and universities in the greater Burlington area. Together with the Center for an Agricultural Economy and the University of Vermont, the Intervale Center will invest in improved ordering systems and infrastructure and strengthen pathways for increased local sourcing at several college campuses, benefiting farmers, including socially disadvantaged farmers, and students and staff. 

Local Food Works for Educational Institutions: Growing Places Garden Project, Inc. (MA) was awarded $119,885 to partner with Gardner, Fitchburg, and Montachusett Regional Vocational Technical School and Mount Wachusett Community College in their shared effort to process, source, and serve more locally grown products. The project will create locally produced products through the area’s new food processing center, provide resources and training to school staff, and actively engage farmers, producers, and students in the process to expand and sustain local purchasing.

Meat in the Middle: Building access into farm-to-school supply chains. Red Tomato (RI) was awarded $53,012 to support a supply chain development project that enhances local food access in schools and provides local producers with reliable market access and fair pricing. Working with Brookford Farm and more than ten other small producers in the region, Red Tomato will facilitate expanding regional sourcing partnerships with Easton and Attleboro Public Schools and their food service partner Whitson’s. Through optimized logistics, streamlined ordering, and strengthened community connections, Red Tomato will expand market access for small and mid-sized farms across New Hampshire, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island.   

Rhody Seafood for Rhody Kids: Building Demand for Underutilized Species in School Food. The Commercial Fisheries Center of Rhode Island (RI) was awarded $200,000 to expand their monkfish slider project and increase product development and promotion of seafood products for schools.  With Farm Fresh Rhode Island, Smithfield and Woonsocket Public Schools, Tony’s Seafood, Eating with the Ecosystem, and Rhode Island Farm to School, this project will expand the value chain and market demand for monkfish, increase the amount of local seafood in Rhode Island schools, and improve student and adult knowledge of local seafood.     

Seasonal Solutions: Advancing Local Procurement in Vermont’s School Cafeterias with Harvest of the Month.  Green Mountain Farm-to-School (VT) was awarded $78,774 to build on their food hub’s existing Vermont Harvest of the Month production planning program. This program includes targeted and sustainable customer outreach strategies that engage K-12 schools in northern and central Vermont in monthly, seasonal, locally sourced bulk purchasing.  Partnering with the North Country Supervisory Union, Harwood Unified School District, Milton Town School District, and Vermont Farm to School and Early Childhood Network, this project will grow the program’s local food distribution by 25% within the next two school years.

Second Harvest Partnership: Upcycling Broccoli Processing Byproducts. Fork Food Lab (ME) was awarded $193,369 to develop a line of upcycled broccoli products for 14 colleges serviced by Sodexo including 30,000 students in the University of Maine system. Funds will be used to develop a portfolio of low-cost and nutritious products, such as soup, broccoli-tots, and sauce; procuring Maine-grown broccoli byproducts from Harvesting Good and manufacturing upcycled products at Fork Food Lab. This project will support Sodexo and Maine Course’s goal of sourcing 30% of its university dining program ingredients from Maine by 2030.     

Strengthening Food Bank Farm - Local Farmers - Springfield Public Schools Partnership: The Food Bank of Western Massachusetts, Inc. (MA) was awarded $124,420 to support their partnership with Lakeside Organics of Hadley, Atlas Farm, and Springfield Public Schools. Prize funds will support equipment purchases that allow farmers to grow, harvest, and process more organic vegetables on the Food Bank Farm in Hadley to sell to Springfield Public Schools. Springfield Public Schools will promote the local and organic food in the cafeteria, classroom, and on field trips to the Food Bank Farm.  

The nine projects were elected from over thirty-five initial letters of interest. The Kendall staff, along with a team of reviewers engaged in the New England food system, carefully reviewed and evaluated the proposals. Prize reviewers represent a diversity of sectors in the food system including staff from local food hubs and distributors, school nutrition and college dining programs, and community-based organizations. Farm to Institution New England (FINE) also plays a crucial role in supporting the New England Food Vision Prize by promoting it and providing guidance to potential applicants.

Beth Zschau, Program Associate for the Henry P. Kendall Foundation shares, “We would like to extend our gratitude to the FINE team as well as this year’s proposal reviewers for their invaluable contributions to the Prize program. Thank you to Joe Flueckiger, Mike Flynn, Holly Fowler, Sam Icklan, Dai Kim, Sandra Thomas, Natalie Varrallo, and Herb Virgo for your dedication and insight.”

Learn more about the Prize program and read about Prize winners at kendall.org.

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About the Henry P. Kendall Foundation: In 2011, the Henry P. Kendall Foundation launched its regional food systems grant-making program. Since then, the foundation has actively partnered with organizations, networks, and leaders dedicated to building a healthy, resilient food system in New England. Committed to the New England Food Vision, the Foundation seeks to support innovative approaches that capitalize on the current heightened awareness and interest in our food system. For more information, please visit our website: www.kendall.org.