MOUNT VERNON, Mo. — The Mount Vernon School District has been chosen as the first and only district so far to participate in the MO Beef for MO Kids program, a partnership that will involve local cattle ranchers in an effort to increase the amount of meat served in school lunches.
The program is a joint effort of the Missouri Department of Agriculture, the Missouri Beef Industry Council, Opaa Food Management and the school district. It launched last week at a "Farm to Fork" dinner at Mount Vernon High School, and students in all Mount Vernon schools will see double the amount of beef in their lunches thanks to farmers in Lawrence County, the top cattle-producing county in the state.
"We know it's going to help our kids understand the importance of the beef and cattle industry in Lawrence County," said Scott Cook, superintendent of Mount Vernon schools. "It's the backbone of Lawrence County. We want kids to know there's a lot of work that goes into how their food is made."
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