The Kansas Department of Agriculture (KDA) is the nation's first state department of agriculture. The agency is devoted to the total support of agriculture in Kansas. The department works for the entire Kansas agriculture sector, including farmers, ranchers, food establishments and agribusinesses. The department is dedicated to providing support and assistance to make Kansas businesses successful and encouraging more farms, ranches and other agriculture business to expand in or relocate to Kansas.
In partnership with the Kansas Foundation for Agriculture in the Classroom, the Kansas Department of Agriculture seeks to increase child nutrition knowledge and consumption of fruits and vegetables by providing Kansas licensed early child care providers with age-appropriate agriculture education curriculum and resource kits to teach children about Kansas fruit and vegetable production. While teaching the curriculum, early child care providers and organizations administering the program on behalf of child care providers in a community or region will be eligible to receive reimbursement for purchases of locally grown fruits and vegetables used in the lessons.
The program titled “Our Earliest Eaters: Bringing the Farm to Kansas Licensed Early Child Care” is made possible by the Specialty Crop Block Grant Program from the U.S. Department of Agriculture Agricultural Marketing Service.
This round of funding is intended for Family Child Care Homes. Individual family child care homes and organizations who intend to administer the program to family child care homes in their community or region are eligible to apply.
The purpose of the Specialty Crop Block Grant Program (SCBGP) is to enhance the competitiveness of specialty crops. Specialty crops are defined as fruits, vegetables, tree nuts, dried fruits, horticulture, and nursery crops (including floriculture). Eligible plants must be cultivated or managed and used by people for food, medicinal purposes, and/or aesthetic gratification to be considered specialty crops.