Context
Various district municipalities across the Baltics have put food and sustainability as a theme in their long term regional strategic plans. Essential involvement, collaboration and having a common goal from municipalities are key to advancing food systems' sustainability and to tackle the challenges that come with it. Sustainable school meals with Farm to School programmes as catalysts for food system change is a lever to enable large-scale (integrated) food sustainability transitions.

What is Farm to School?
Farm to school enriches the connection communities have with local, healthy food and food producers by changing food purchasing and educational activities at schools and preschools. Farm to school activities and policies are unique to location, and can be defined in a multitude of ways. For the purposes of this evaluation framework, the core elements of farm to school activities are:

1. Procurement of local and regional food products;
2. Gardening, based at schools and preschools; and
3. Education, food and farm related.

Challenge
A small number of innovative approaches are being tested and implemented in Klaipeda-, Kurzeme-, Latgale-, Tartu- and Vorumaa region but the resulting outcomes remain to be leveraged for impact at scale in line with the targets of Agenda 2030 and the European Farm to Fork strategy.
The implementation of Farm to School pilots of the five regions that were tested in May 2023 till April 2024 showcased building a Farm to School system in the Baltic countries requires more communication, direct school administration contacts with local farmers, and greater involvement of municipalities in legislative amendments, as well as help in creating shorter food supply chains.

Solution
A Farm to School Mission-Oriented Framework that is aimed at fostering the development of a community of practice, to support replication, adaptation and expansion of successful Farm to School programme models. The framework has been developed for use by local and regional municipalities, programme practitioners, policy-makers and development partners, as well as civil society and community-based organisations, and the private sector too.