Colorado schools to incorporate local food in lunch menus

Nov. 13—The first "Farm to School Census" by the U.S. Department of Agriculture found that almost half of Colorado school districts are participating in farm-to-school programs, with apples, peaches and beef listed as the top three local products being purchased.

The recently released census also found that 16% of Colorado school districts' food budgets are spent locally, and 12% of districts have schools with edible gardens.

Boulder Valley, which has worked for the last few years to add more local food to its menu, spends 25 to 30% of its $1.6 million food budget locally.