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Local Foods
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Local Food

Local Food
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MPS is committed to supporting local farmers and food producers in our community. We are proud that more 25% of the food we purchase comes from local businesses.

What is local?

Our district's local food purchases include produce, meat, legumes, grains, and other food products. To define local food products, MPS adheres to the Good Food Purchasing Program's definition of "local" as being sourced and/or produced within 250 miles (500 miles for meat) of our location. 

Local Produce

If it grows in our region, you can almost certainly bet that we source it from local farms for our students to enjoy!
 
  • Farm to School Produce: MPS works directly with a more than a dozen small and mid-sized partner farmers located within approximately 100 miles of the Twin Cities to buy a variety of produce grown specifically for our district. Our Farm to School partner farms use sustainable growing methods and are selected through an annual, competitive bidding process. Learn more about our Farm to School partner farms and annual bidding process. 
     
  • Local Produce: If we're not able to source specific items from our Farm to School partner farms, then we'll look for ways to buy it from another farm in our area. Local produce includes all additional produce grown by farms located within 250 miles of the Twin Cities.  
 
Depending on the season, the following Farm to School & local items can be found in MPS lunchrooms: Acorn Squash, Apples, Beauty Heart Radishes, Beets, Butternut Squash, Broccoli, Brussel Sprouts, Cabbage, Carrots, Celeriac, Celery, Cucumbers, Delicata Squash, Golden Beets, Honeydew, Jalapeno Peppers, Kale, Kohlrabi, Parsnips, Purple Daikon Radishes, Red Potatoes, Red Radishes, Romaine, Russet Potatoes, Rutabaga, Spaghetti Squash, Sweet Corn, Sweet Potatoes, Tomatoes, Watermelon, Yukon Gold Potatoes, Zucchini Squash. 

Local Meats

MPS partners with two local meat suppliers to source high-quality meat products for our students:

  • Ferndale Market (Cannon Falls, MN) - Free Range Turkey, raised without the use of antibiotics 
  • Thousand Hills Lifetime Grazed (Becker, MN) - 100% Grass Beef

Other Local Foods

We also serve a variety grains, baked goods, and other foods from local producers and vendors:
  • Annie B's Popcorn and Caramel (Kellog, MN) - Caramel
  • Barrel O' Fun (Perham, MN) - Tortilla Chips, Pretzels
  • Bongard Creameries (Norwood Young America, MN) - Cheese
  • Captain Ken's (St. Paul, MN) - Vegetarian Baked Beans
  • Catallia Mexican Foods (St. Paul, MN) - Whole Grain Tortillas
  • Citrus Systems (Hopkins, MN) - Fruit Juices & Smoothies
  • Cookie Cart (Minneapolis, MN) - Chocolate Chip Cookies
  • Favorable Treats (Minneapolis, MN) - Frozen Cookie Dough
  • Flavor Temptations (Madison, WI) - Organic Indian Spices
  • Foran Spice Company (Oak Creek, WI) - Taco Seasoning
  • Grassland Dairy (Milwaukee, WI) - Butter
  • Great Northern Bakery (Minneapolis, MN) - Cookies, Breakfast Breads, Dinner Rolls, Corn Muffins
  • InHarvest (Bemidji, MN) - Cous Cous, Quinoa, Farro, Wheat Berries, Wild Rice
  • Jonny Pop (St. Louis Park, MN) - Jonny Pops
  • Land O' Lakes (Arden Hills, MN) - Plain Yogurt
  • La Perla (Minneapolis, MN) - Tostadas
  • Mixmi (Minneapolis, MN) - Frozen Yogurt 
  • Pan O' Gold (St. Cloud, MN) - Sliced Bread, Hot Dog Buns, Hamburger Bun
  • Salsa Lisa (Minneapolis, MN) - Salsa
  • Shroeder's Agropur (St. Paul, MN) - Milk
  • Sunny Fresh (Monticello, MN) - Eggs
  • Westby Creamery (Westby, WI) - Sour Cream, Yogurt
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