Harvest of the Month, Lake County Farm to School

Elementary schools throughout Lake County participate in a Harvest of the Month (HOTM) program, thanks to the generous support of Lake County Health Services Department, Public Health Division, SNAP-Ed Project. 

Harvest of the Month was initially created by several local school districts in California as part of a broader nutrition education effort targeted to low-income students. Recognizing the value of this approach, the California Department of Public Health adopted Harvest of the Month in 2005, launching a statewide effort that is standardized, cost-effective, replicable, and available to all.

Harvest of the Month aims to:

• Increase access to fruits and vegetables through school meal programs, farm-to-school programs, classrooms, school gardens, farmers' markets, grocery stores, community gardens, worksites, and other community-based locations.
• Increase consumers' preference for fruits and vegetables.
• Increase consumption of locally grown food items by connecting growers to their communities through farmers' markets, food retail stores, schools, and food banks, among others.
• Increase participation in daily physical activity and an understanding of why it is important to our health.
• Expand familiarity with California grown fruits and vegetables, local farmers, the state's rich agricultural bounty, and how food travels from the farm to our plates.

All providers of HOTM programming in Lake and Mendocino Counties have created a calendar based on what is available locally and in season. You can download a pdf of the calendar here.

A HOTM recipe booklet  was developed for the Lake County Farm to School Program by Chef Jenny Huston of Farm to Table Services and can be downloaded here.

Fruits and vegetables highlighted in the HOTM Recipe Booklet include cucumbers, sweet peppers, persimmons, cabbage, kale, root crops, dried fruit, spinach, peas, and more!

Recipes come in 10 and 100-serving sizes, perfect for schools, after school programs, and other groups looking to serve locally available seasonal produce in meal programs.

Harvest of the Month Calendar:

January........................ Beets

February...................... Kale/Leafy Greens or Citrus

March.......................... Lettuce/Salad Greens

April............................. Radishes

May.............................. Peas

June.............................. Strawberries

July............................... Cucumbers

August.......................... Cherry Tomatoes

September................... Melons or Slicer Tomatoes

October........................ Sweet Peppers or Pears

November................... Apples or Carrots

December.................... Winter Squash