ALBANY – State Senator Michelle Hinchey (D, Saugerties) and Assemblywoman Donna Lupardo (D, Binghamton) are pushing for a modernized farm to school meal program for districts throughout the state, and they are lobbying to have it included in the 2026-27 state budget.
The proposal would require no new state funding and help more schools access existing Farm to School funds to put more nutritious, New York-grown food into school meals, says Hinchey.
“We want to update the farm to school program to allow our schools to be reimbursed for all meals during the school day as well as make sure there are some provisions to support the schools that have been championing this program to date and make sure that they can move forward with the bigger purchasing thresholds when all food is included,” she said.
Both the Senate and Assembly one-house budget bills contain partial program updates, but the lawmakers are pushing for the complete adoption of the improvements.
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