Up To Date

Farm-to-school food delivery is helping Lee's Summit feed its students

By Steve Kraske,

Published November 3, 2021 at 4:10 PM CDT

Ways To Subscribe

A view down the rows of a growing tunnel with vertical wood posts spaced evenly down five neat rows of various green plants running the length of the tunnel. The plants are in early stages of growth. — With growing tunnels like the one above, KC Food Hub farmers are able to grow produce year round.

Disruptions in the supply chain left metro school districts scrambling to find suppliers. The KC Food Hub is stepping in to connect schools with farmers.

A growers' cooperative, The Kansas City Food Hub has 22 member farmers who aggregate the distribution of their products.

With five "sub-hubs" strategically located, no farmer has to drive more than 40 minutes to get their produce into the delivery chain.

For school districts the benefit is a reliable source of local fresh food to feed breakfast and lunch to students who rely on their schools as a nutrition source.

Katie Nixon, farmer and president of The Kansas City Food Hub

Tags

Up To Date Podcast Lee's Summit School District schools school lunch farming Cooperatives agriculture

Steve Kraske

When I host Up To Date each morning at 9, my aim is to engage the community in conversations about the Kansas City area’s challenges, hopes and opportunities. I try to ask the questions that listeners want answered about the day’s most pressing issues and provide a place for residents to engage directly with newsmakers. Reach me at steve@kcur.org or on Twitter @stevekraske.

See stories by Steve Kraske

Reginald David

As an assistant producer on Up To Date, my goal is to amplify voices of people who serve as pioneers in their respective fields while shedding light on issues that affect underserved communities. I produce daily conversations to uplift and inspire the people of the Kansas City area to make the world a better place. You can reach me at reginalddavid@kcur.org.

See stories by Reginald David

Danie Alexander

As senior producer of Up To Date, I want our listeners to hear familiar and new voices that shine light on the issues and challenges facing the myriad communities KCUR serves, and to expose our audiences to the wonderful and the creative in the Kansas City area. Just as important to me is an obligation to mentor the next generation of producers to ensure that the important conversations continue. Reach me at alexanderdk@kcur.org.

See stories by Danie Alexander