The Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program (FFVP) for Returning Schools

1. The Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program (FFVP) for Returning Schools

2. Goals This is a United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) program that focuses on creating healthier school environments by providing healthier food choices, by: • Expanding the variety of fruits and vegetables children experience; • Increasing children’s fruit and vegetable consumption; and • Making a difference in children’s diets to impact their present and future health.

3. How To Be Successful

4. Form a Team • Program Coordinator • Food Service Manager (if not coordinator) and staff • Administration • School Nurse • Physical Education/Health Teacher • Curriculum and Guidance Counselor • Teachers • Custodians • Parents/Parent-Teacher Association • Student Government

5. Process • Coordinate/Communicate • Planning (menu, budget, etc.) • Ordering • Deliveries • Storage in schools • Methods of distribution • Clean up • Claim submission

6. Rollout of FFVP in Schools(Cannot use FFVP Funds) • Suggest special event to present this year’s program to students, staff, parents, and media. • Promote to staff at district pre-planning. • Publicize through school or district media. • Provide parents with information by setting up an FFVP table at Open House. • Organize a special event with special guest—high school students, cheerleaders, superintendent, mascots.

7. Fruits & Vegetables

8. Who Can Receive Fruits and Vegetables? (page10) • All children who are enrolled at the school. • Only teachers that are directly responsible for serving the fruit/vegetable to the students in a classroom setting. • Not intended for the general teacher population, other adults in the school, or community residents. • FFVP cannot be used for gifts and rewards and cannot be withheld as part of a discipline procedure.

9. Best Times to Serve (page 12) • Any time during the school day, except during breakfast and lunch. • Serve once a day or during multiple times with some students served in the morning and some in the afternoon to maximize participation. • When determining distribution, consider: • grade level • maturity of students • time available to eat the fruits and vegetables • time required for preparation and service of fresh fruits and vegetables • extra clean-up • garbage concerns • staffing issues *All students must have access to the program, but a student has the option of not participating.

10. Best Places to Serve (pages12-13) • Classrooms • Hallways • Centrally located kiosks can offer more choices • As part of nutrition education activities • Outside *Most successful distribution areas are places where children can easily consume the fruits/vegetables.

11. Delivery • Teachers send counts in the morning and produce is prepared. • Child nutrition staff count and place produce in marked baskets, bins, bags, etc. • Cafeteria is the most logical spot for central point for pick-up. • Staff, volunteers, sometime the students, deliver to classroom. • Teachers distribute to students at optimal time and plans an NE lesson. • Containers are returned to the cafeteria at the end of the day for sanitation and next-day preparation.

12. Unallowable items (page 14-15) • Processed, canned, and frozen fruits and vegetables • Dried fruits or vegetables of any kind • Excess amounts of dips • Regular dressings or dips, peanut butter, hummus • Trail mix • Fruit or vegetables juices • Fruit that has added flavorings including fruit that has been injected with flavorings • Smoothies • Fruit strips, fruit drops, fruit leather • Spices/seasonings

13. FFVP Limits (page 15) Dips: • Vegetables: • Offer only low-fat, yogurt-based or other low-fat and fat-free dressings • 1-2 tablespoons low-fat dips or dressings allowed for vegetables only! • Think creatively! Instead of serving lettuce, provide a lettuce and tomato with a light Italian dressing. • Fruit: No dips of any kind allowed Note: “Prepared Vegetables”: Fresh vegetables (not canned, frozen, dried) can be cooked, but must be limited to once a week.

14. Serving Guidelines (page 16) • Serve 2 or more times per week (reference your application). • Purchase and serve more of your students’ favorites, but continue efforts to introduce new items. • Appealing and easy to grab. • No specific portion size is required - consider the age of students. • Suggestion is to provide ½ cup for portioned items or prebagged items. • Serve different varieties of the same fruit (i.e.. Bartlett, Bosc, and Seckel pears) or vegetable (bell, sweet banana, and poblano peppers). • Try “sample sizes” to introduce new items .

15. Purchasing (page 17-19) • Follow proper state/local purchasing procedures. • Purchase from local grocery stores, produce growers, and farmers’ markets. • Support Farm-to-School projects. • Buy Florida produce when able. • Buy American when applicable.

16. Leftovers/Cleanup (page 18) • Extra items can be given to students who request another serving. • Increase portion size if always having leftovers. • Those providing the FFVP may participate in the FFVP tasting. • Plan for one day a week to serve leftovers. • Provide a share table for leftovers after distribution to the children, at lunch and free…as long as the students receiving the leftovers are part of the FFVP school! • Provide trash bags and disinfecting wipes for the classroom. *Share basket for teachers, nurses’ station, custodians, etc., cannot be provided. * Leftovers cannot be taken home by anyone.

17. Nutrition Education

18. Lessons (pages 20-21) • Nutrition education lesson is recommendedbe taught during the time of the FFVP “snacktime”. • However, for example, it can be given during a time like the morning show or announcements where ALL students will be participating and can received the nutrition education for that FFVP of the day. • Include whenever possible, even on days the program is not offered. • Consult with FFVP partners to obtain no-cost promotional items. • Make teachers and administrators aware of resources like: • www.choosemyplate.gov • http://www.fruitsandveggiesmorematters.org/

19. Ideas (pages 20-21) • Monthly/quarterly poster contests to decorate serving line and classrooms. • Mystery fruit or vegetable of the week. • Small white board featuring fruit or vegetable of the day on the serving line. • Staff dresses up as fruit or vegetable. • AM/PM announcements. • Monthly menus sent to teachers and parents. • Include information about the FFVP every month in school newsletter.

20. Additional Ideas • English • Story Problems • Internet Reading • Writing Projects • Language • Other • Art Projects • Make a recipe book • Trivia • Physical Activities Science/Math • Experiments • Weighing/Measuring • Nutrition Facts • Graphing (likes and dislikes) • Health/Fitness Activities • Gardening/Composting • Geography

21. Questions (pages 20-21) Can FFVP funds be used to purchase NE materials? • No, schools should find other methods to fund the cost of NE materials. Can schools use FFVP funds for promotional costs? • No, costs associated with promotional activities cannot be funded by FFVP.

22. Funding

23. Program funds • For FY15-16, the amount of funds for each Florida student is $50 per student. • The student allocation has been set at $50 per student/per school. FFVP funds cannot be moved from one school to another at any time during the FFVP year. • May use no more than 10 percent of the total grant for administrative costs. Funds are allocated in 2 quarters: • July 1 – September 30 • October 1 – June 30 NOTE: If you will not be using all of your funds from the July allocation, please notify me by September 9th(or ASAP) as to how much you will have left by September 30…those extra funds will be added to the October allocation.

24. Ideas for 1st Quarter spending • Order produce for delivery in August-September • Equipment for the program • Order small supplies (napkins, utensils, paper plates, etc.)

25. Reimbursable Costs

26. Two Types (pages 22-24) Operating Costs - the costs of running the FFVP service…documented expenses for acquiring, delivering, preparing, and serving • Purchasing of the fruits, vegetables, low-fat dips • Nondurable/nonfood supplies (disposable bowls, plates, napkins, flatware, bowls, trays, baskets, cleaning supplies, trash bags.). • Durable supplies (baskets, bins, etc.). • Precut produce and ready-made produce trays. • Salaries and fringe benefits of operational employees. *Keep in mind that most of a school’s FFVP funds must go toward purchasing fresh fruits and vegetables. *Reimbursement is based on actual allowable costs.

27. Two Types (pages 22-24) Administrative costs -are documented expenses for planning, paperwork, and all aspects not related to prep and service of fruit and vegetables • School administrative costs are limited to 10% of the school’s total FFVP grant • Purchasing or leasing equipment – refrigerators, coolers, carts, portable kiosks, etc. • Salaries and benefits for employees who maintain financial reports, plan and write menus, order produce, track inventory, and coordinate NE activities. *Equipment can be purchased using 10% of administrative funds if sufficient funds have been allocated to cover these purchases. All equipment purchases need a written justification and prior approval from the state office.

28. Paperwork

29. What is Required? (pages 25-26) • Participation in FFVP training(whether from the state or from your district). • Complete and submit a monthly claim. • You are responsible for ensuring that all claims are correct and appropriate. • Maintain accurate records for five years at BOTH district and school level. • Recordkeeping requirements is similar to other child nutrition programs.

30. Monitoring (page 26) • Review of all claims submitted for reimbursement • majority of funds are used to purchase fresh produce • equipment purchases • labor costs and other non-food costs are minimal • FFVP schools selected for a Administrative Review will have the FFVP reviewed. • Excessive corrective action, inability to successfully manage the program, lack of support from food service staff and school administration, and/or lack of NE will result in findings. Findings can limit participation in future FFVP years.

31. Claims • 30 days to submit the FFVP claim after the end of the month (following the NSLP claims deadline calendar) • Claim must identify monthly school purchase data (produce item, # cases, cost per case). • Operating costs and Admin costs are claimed separately • If you submit a combined May/June claim for NSLP, you must submit a combined May/June FFVP claim * Remember: Admin costs are not mandatory!

32. Production Records • Must be maintained on a daily basis. • Record fruits and vegetables as purchased in cases, pounds, etc. • Record other foods, such as dips, in sections with fruits and vegetables. • Record leftovers – if possible. • Monitor classroom leftovers.

33. Payroll • Number of hours schools claim vary from 30 minutes to two+ hours/day. • Time sheet of hours worked specifically on the FFVP must be maintained and signed off by the Food Service Manager. • Talk with business manager about allocating hours between NSLP and FFVP.

34. Food Safety Procedures (pages 31-32) • Train all staff involved in FFVP on food safety. • Educate on standard operating procedures regarding: • receiving and storage • washing fruits and vegetables prior to distribution • labelling, dating, and refrigerating fresh-cut items, etc.

35. Resources • Please continue to use our FFVP resource found at: FDACS, FNW - FFVP webpage • Additional Resources: USDA FFVP website MyPlate Materials Fruit and Vegetable Nutrition Education FFVP Handbook

36. Successful Outcomes! • Positive responses from students, teachers, and principals. • Changed snack content in schools. • Children ate new fruits and vegetables. • Established partnerships with local organizations. • Increased attention span of students.

37. Share Your Successes! • Keep copies of emails, letters, etc. • Take pictures during the implementation of the program. • Use the media. • Incorporate the FFVP into your district/school wellness policy. Share your stories and pictures with us!!

38. Contact Information Amy Campbell-Smith 850/617-7411 amy.campbell-smith@freshfromflorida.com

39. Thank you!