Local Food Purchasing Incentives

What are Local Food Purchasing Incentives?

Local Food Purchasing Incentives (LFPIs) are programs that provide additional funding to child nutrition program (CNP) operators to directly offset or incentivize local food purchases.

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This resource series seen below on LFPIs was produced through collaboration between the Michigan State University Center for Regional Food Systems (CRFS) and the National Farm to School Network. This project aims to contribute to the growing body of knowledge on LFPIs and provide more information for farm to school advocates and practitioners nationwide.

More information about Local Food Purchasing Incentives:

To learn more about states that offer LFPIs, check out farmtoschool.org/policy/lfpi.
To learn more about Values-Aligned purchasing, see this resource from the National Farm to School Network farmtoschool.org/resources-main/what-is-values-based-purchasing.

Farm to School Local Food Purchasing Incentives: An Introduction to Incentives

Published on May 29, 2024
Learn the basics of Local Food Purchasing Incentives (LFPIs) that provide additional funding to child nutrition programs or incentivize local food purchases.
Farm to School Local Food Purchasing Incentives: The Benefits of Local Food Purchasing Incentives

Published on May 29, 2024
Local Food Purchasing Incentive programs can be an effective policy tool to increase educational experiences for children, support local farmers, and nourish communities, making them a vital catalyst in the ongoing success of the farm to school movement.
Farm to School Local Food Purchasing Incentives: Program Administration

Published on May 29, 2024
This resource illustrates various aspects of Local Food Purchasing Incentive (LFPI) administration, showcases examples of collaboration, and addresses common challenges faced by administrators.
Farm to School Local Food Purchasing Incentives: Program Development Considerations and Team Planning Guide

Published on May 29, 2024
The purpose of this resource is to provide Local Food Purchasing Incentive program designers and stakeholders with essential questions to create programs, or modify elements of existing programs.
Farm to School Local Food Purchasing Incentives: An Introduction to State-Level Policies to Support Farm to School Local Food Purchasing Since 2020

Published on May 29, 2024
State-level policies play a pivotal role in bolstering local food purchasing within educational institutions, primarily K–12 school and early care and education (ECE) settings.
Expanded Local Food Purchasing Incentives: Programs that Reimburse More Than Local Food

Published on May 29, 2024
A key distinguishing factor among Local Food Purchasing Incentives is their focus on incentivizing specific types of foods or nonfood products, a decision that significantly impacts various agricultural sectors and the overall accessibility of the program.
Farm to School Local Food Purchasing Incentives: Incorporating Additional Values

Published on May 29, 2024
As interest continues to rise in local food purchasing incentive (LFPI) policies, the conversations around them are expanding beyond prioritizing purchases based simply on whether they are “local” foods.
Farm to School Local Food Purchasing Incentives: What if States Funded Farmers to sell to Schools?

Published on May 29, 2024
This resource considers alternative ways that policymakers can directly subsidize local farmers, food hubs, and other producers to increase their sales to K–12 schools and early care and educational (ECE) settings.

Envisioning Farmer-Focused Local Food Purchasing Incentive Programs

Published on October 16, 2023
State-level local food purchasing incentives typically provide funding to schools to purchase local foods—but what if we flipped the narrative?
Local Food Incentive Programs - State Program Flash Talks

Published on August 24, 2023
The MSU Center for Regional Food Systems and National Farm to School Network hosted a two-part webinar series that explored ten different local food purchasing incentives (LFPIs) across the nation on August 9 and 14.

Center for Regional Food Systems