This school year, Central Texas students are expanding their palates and enjoying an array of fresh produce and protein from local farmers delivered by the Central Texas Food Bank (CTFB). This fall, CTFB, in partnership with Lake Travis ISD, Manor ISD, and Florence ISD, launched a Food Hub Program to provide a channel to local farmers and ranchers.
“The Food Hub began as a way for our food bank to expand our role in strengthening the local food system,” said Tracy Ayrhart, PhD, Vice President of Strategic Insights. “Traditionally, food banks focus on procuring food for charitable distributions, but through conversations with schools and community partners like the Sustainable Food Center and Farmshare Austin, we saw an opportunity to harness our infrastructure to uplift small-scale producers while meeting community needs in a new way.”
The Local Food for Schools Cooperative Agreement grant (LFS) provided the perfect framework for the CTFB’s vision. The LFS grant aims to invigorate local food systems by prioritizing historically underserved and small-scale businesses, but local school districts that applied and received the grant found themselves facing a logistical hurdle: how to get fresh, local food from farms to students before the grant’s March 2025 deadline. That’s where CTFB stepped in.
To pilot the program, the CTFB worked with local farmers such as Hope Full Farm to grow produce specifically for this initiative and collaborated with a mid-sized chicken producer to secure wings. Since late October 2024, CTFB has successfully delivered a wide array of fresh foods, including chicken wings, lunchbox peppers, basil, cilantro, cucumbers, arugula, jalapeños, okra, bell peppers, garlic, lavender, dill, and apple mint. These vibrant additions to school menus not only nourish students but also help support Texas farmers by creating a secure market for their produce.
“Being a part of the Food Hub made it possible for us to get our 30 pounds of lunchbox peppers into the school system. We couldn’t have done it without this program,” said Alison Stone, Farm Manager at Hope Full Farm.
For schools, the program has been a game changer, “This program has helped us be flexible and think about what’s available and how we can bring that onto our menu,” said Marissa Bell, Dietitian and Marketing Coordinator at Lake Travis ISD. “It’s sparked creativity among our staff, which has been really exciting to see. For example, we’ve used local cilantro and jalapeños to make a Texas salsa. It’s been neat to feature these fresh foods and see how they transform our meals.”
Bell says one of the unexpected stars of the program has been lunchbox peppers.
“The lunchbox peppers just flew off the fruit and vegetable trays,” Bell shared. “They added this beautiful color we don’t always get and sparked curiosity in the students. It was so exciting and cute to see their reaction.”
“Hearing how excited kids were about the lunchbox peppers keeps me going,” Stone said. “Farming is hard, but seeing kids enjoy our food and light up makes it all worthwhile.”
Beyond adding flavor and variety, the program has created opportunities to educate students about our food systems and nutrition. When kids noticed that the pasture-raised chicken wings were smaller than what they were used to, it opened the door for a valuable conversation.
“It became a great opportunity to talk about how production practices impact the quality and nutrition of our food, as well as its appearance,” Bell said. “It’s been a really good teachable moment.”
For Bell, the benefits of incorporating local foods into school menus go beyond the lunch tray.
“Incorporating local food has helped increase the quality of our meals overall,” Bell explained. “It’s also helping us shift more toward scratch cooking methods, which limits additives in our meals, increases the skill set of our staff, and makes the food taste fresher and more delicious for our students.”
The ripple effects of the Food Hub extended to the broader community.
“When we share pictures of the foods we’re offering and the thoughtfulness behind sourcing, it builds trust with our parent community and shows our commitment to providing fresh, delicious meals,” Bell said. “The Food Hub has laid the foundation for critical relationships. It’s helped connect Central Texas food with Central Texas schools, which feels like a dream come true.”
The program’s success is already inspiring plans for the future. CTFB hopes to expand the Food Hub model to include institutional buyers like hospitals, nonprofits, and colleges.
While current efforts are focused on school districts with LFS grants, the goal is to create a sustainable system where small logistics fees and market-driven solutions keep the program thriving long-term.
“We hear repeatedly through our Food Access Community Needs Assessments and through local food planning work that food hubs play a critical role in strengthening the food system, thereby increasing local food access. We hope this food hub is one of the many long-term solutions the Central Texas Food Bank can provide to increase equitable access to local food,” said Ayrhart.
“I hope the Food Hub continues to provide consistency of local foods to school systems,” Stone said. “This could help rehumanize students, sparking an interest in becoming a chef, eating healthier, or understanding the planet better.”
As students savor the fresh flavors of locally grown food, the Central Texas Food Bank is proving that a stronger, more resilient food system isn’t just an idea — it’s happening right now, one delivery at a time.
Want to help us create a healthy future for all our neighbors? Visit our website to learn more about our programs and how you can get involved.
