Bedford, PA – The Pennsylvania Beef Council (PBC) has launched the “PA BEEF TO PA SCHOOLS” initiative in fall 2022. The program is spearheaded by the PBC with additional funding support from the PA Department of Agriculture through an ag commodity promo grant. Additionally, local farmers have also provided generous donations, as it remains a priority and passion to feed the next generation.
The “PA BEEF TO PA SCHOOLS” program works to connect schools and their food service professionals to cattle producers in order to “Beef-up” their school lunches. By doing so, schools are providing beef more often and sourcing beef from local producers. The effort helps to fight food insecurity as well as supporting local farms and the opportunity to connect the local community with the PA Beef Industry.
The program in its inaugural year will have placed over 6,500 pounds of beef to four different school districts across the Commonwealth, including Northern Bedford, Cocalico, Donegal and Spring Grove School Districts. School Foodservice directors have been delighted with the beef sourced and have done some recipe development outside of utilizing only ground beef within the school setting. The program looks to continue to grow but for now is providing an estimated 7,100 students beef one more time a week.
Beef includes ten essential nutrients that can support a healthy and active lifestyle through the power of protein. “We are passionate about fueling young students with beef and connecting the dots between Pennsylvania farm families and beef meals on the lunch tray,” said, Nichole Hockenberry, PA Beef Council, Executive Director. “Our desire is to provide quality nutrition and grow the next generation of beef consumers.”
To learn more, contact Nichole Hockenberry, PA Beef Council, Executive Director at nhockenberry@pabeef.org or 1-888-4BEEFPA.
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The Pennsylvania Beef Council is a producer-controlled and funded organization, which administers the Beef Checkoff Program in Pennsylvania. The Beef Checkoff Program assesses $1 per head on the sale of live domestic and imported cattle, in addition to a comparable assessment on imported beef and beef products. Checkoff revenues may be used for promotion, education and research programs to improve the marketing climate for beef.
