Farm to School Investment Yields a Healthy Return into State Coffers

Economic Impact Analysis of Pilot Program Shows a Nearly 2-to-1 Multiplier for
Every Dollar Invested in Local Food for the Lunchroom

PORTLAND, Ore., March 18 /PRNewswire/ -- As state lawmakers search for ways to
immediately stimulate Oregon's malnourished economy, a new economic impact
analysis proves that investing in locally produced foods for the school
lunchroom fortifies the state's economy with dollars previously spent
elsewhere.

A preliminary analysis of the impact of investing school food dollars in the
local food economy was released today by Ecotrust. The analysis was conducted
as part of a rigorous review of the local buying practices currently underway
in two public school districts in Oregon, Gervais and Portland, where school
foodservice directors are using a philanthropic investment made by the Kaiser
Permanente Community Fund at the Northwest Health Foundation to test the
impact of proposed "farm to school" policies currently being debated in the
Oregon Legislature.

Much like the legislation currently under consideration, the Kaiser Permanente
grant allocates funds on a per meal basis (seven cents per lunch served) to a
combined total of 91 schools in Gervais and Portland for the express purpose
of buying more Oregon grown, processed and manufactured food for the
lunchroom. Early results indicate that over a 14 week time period (mid Sept. -
Dec. 2008), the two districts received $66,193 in Kaiser Permanente grant
funds. Those funds, in turn, catalyzed $225,869 in local purchasing.

The data reveal three key findings. First, as researchers predicted, a small
amount of money can leverage much greater investment in local purchasing, as
the Kaiser Permanente grant dollars encouraged a 72 percent increased
investment in local foods. Second, an input-output analysis was used to
estimate the economic benefits of these purchases to the Oregon economy and
shows that for every food dollar spent locally by the two school districts, an
additional 87 cents was spent in Oregon, generating a multiplier of 1.87 for
farm to school spending. Finally, research confirms that the economic benefits
of investments made in the Oregon agricultural community trigger successive
spending in almost every sector of the Oregon economy. The analysis revealed
that dollars spent in Oregon agriculture reverberated into 401 of 409 of the
state's economic sectors. Researchers will continue to study the effects of
local buying practices throughout the remainder of the school year, but
believe data from the first three months of the pilot project provide early
signs of success.

"This research confirms that farm to school programs are a viable investment
that can make an immediate impact on nearly every sector of our state's
economy," said Deborah Kane, vice president of the Food and Farms program for
Ecotrust. "We knew the effort would likely benefit the Oregon agricultural
community, and of course Oregon's children. We were encouraged to learn that
the benefits extend far beyond the most obvious."

The study has identified other benefits as well. In Gervais, Kaiser Permanente
grant dollars allowed schools to offer a greater variety of fresh fruits and
vegetables than had been served in the prior year. Increased demand for local
products expanded market opportunities for more than two dozen Oregon farmers,
food processors and manufacturers. In Portland, community partnerships
blossomed to support the changes taking place in the cafeteria, with area
grocery stores championing school food improvements as part of the grant. And
once schools introduced a new menu item, such as a locally produced salsa, the
demand and popularity of the product grew and it did not go away after a
single serving.

"The extra investment in our lunch program gave us tremendous purchasing
power, so that across the board, products that we had been buying outside of
Oregon - apples, beef, chili, cheese, corn - we were able to source locally,"
said Kristy Obbink, nutrition services director, Portland Public Schools
District. "This demonstrates how we can take a few cents and sprinkle it over
the entire school meal and drive way more money into the Oregon economy."

As the farm to school pilot program continues in two districts, interest and
momentum for sourcing local in the lunchroom is growing statewide as indicated
in a recent poll of Oregon foodservice directors conducted by Ecotrust. From
Coos Bay to Milton-Freewater, from Woodburn to Medford, survey participants
self-reported that if given an additional 15 cents per for every lunch served
in their district, they would seek out Oregon grown, processed or manufactured
products, with a particular interest in fresh, frozen and canned fruits and
vegetables, dairy products, beef and bakery products. Of those districts that
completed the survey, 88 percent were currently buying some local products for
the lunch room, but reported that the number one barrier to purchasing more
local products is limited funds.

HB 2800 Would Fund Farm to School Statewide and Generate Revenue to the State
On the heels of the positive results of the study, Ecotrust and partners, is
working with State Representatives Tina Kotek (D - North/Northeast Portland)
and Brian Clem (D - Salem) to introduce a bill this legislative session (HB
2800) to fund ongoing farm to school efforts statewide. HB 2800 builds upon
the existing farm to school infrastructure, which was cast in place during the
2007 legislative session and 2008 special session, and requests $22.6 million
during the 2009 fiscal biennium, an investment that organizers forecast will
provide a two-fold return in economic impact statewide.

"Given the current economic climate and the Legislature's focus on stimulating
Oregon's economy, funding farm to school programs in the state is a risk-free
investment and proven to return more dollars to the local economy and help
shore up agricultural and food-related jobs," said Clem.

For every meal served, HB 2800 proposes to provide state funding in the
amounts of seven cents per breakfast and 15 cents per lunch so that school
districts can invest in Oregon grown, processed and manufactured foods for use
in school cafeterias. In order for school districts to access state funds made
available by HB 2800 to support local purchases, districts must first
demonstrate a one-to-one-match using federal funds through the USDA's National
School Lunch and Breakfast program. By leveraging existing federal dollars,
the economic impact on Oregon's agriculture and food manufacturing sectors
will be compounded. The bill also provides grant funds to support agriculture-
and food-based curriculum and garden-based education.

About Ecotrust
Ecotrust's mission is to inspire fresh thinking that creates social equity,
economic opportunity, and environmental well-being. Over nearly 20 years,
Ecotrust has converted $60 million in grants into more than $300 million in
capital for local people, businesses, and organizations from Alaska to
California. Ecotrust is a new kind of organization, one that integrates public
and private purpose and for-profit and non-profit structures. Ecotrust's many
innovations include co-founding the world's first environmental bank, starting
the world's first ecosystem investment fund, creating a range of programs in
fisheries, forestry, food, farms and children's health, and developing new
scientific and information tools to improve social, economic and environmental
decision-making. Ecotrust works locally in ways that promise hope abroad, and
it honors and incorporates the wisdom of native and first nation knowledge in
its work. More on the Web at www.ecotrust.org.

Ecotrust's Food and Farms program endeavors to make sustainability the
underlying value of the mainstream food system; the norm, not the exception.
In close collaboration with a diverse coalition of project partners, Ecotrust
works on a wide-range of initiatives to promote "farm to school" programs that
enable schools to feature locally sourced products in their cafeterias,
incorporate nutrition-based curriculum in all academic disciplines, and
provide students with experiential agriculture and food-based learning
opportunities, from farm visits to gardening, cooking, composting, and
recycling. Our approach is multifaceted and includes: combating obesity,
hunger, and global climate change; supporting Pacific Northwest farmers and
food processors, both big and small; and enhancing regional economic
development and community food security. We work at the local, state, and
regional levels. http://www.ecotrust.org/farmtoschool/

About the Kaiser Permanente Community Fund
The Kaiser Permanente Community Fund (KPCF) at Northwest Health Foundation was
established in late 2004 to advance the health of the communities served by
Kaiser Permanente Northwest. The Fund intends to achieve this goal by
addressing those factors in the social, policy, and physical environment that
impact community health. Often referred to as the social determinants of
health, these factors have been shown to play a major role in the development
of health disparities based on race, ethnicity, and socio-economic status.
http://www.nwhf.org/index.php?/apply/kaiser

SOURCE Ecotrust

Amy Brown, +1-503-341-3795, amyb@seed-pr.com, for Ecotrust