Autauga County schools partner with local farms for summer meals

Free summer meals in Autauga County will reach children ages 1 to 18 this season, and the menu will include squash, zucchini, cucumbers, lettuce, blueberries and peaches grown by Alabama farms. The partnership ties family meal access to local agriculture at a time when many households are looking for relief from higher grocery costs.

Autauga County Schools is taking part in the USDA Summer Food Service Program during summer 2026, and the meals are open to any child in that age range whether or not the child lives in the district or attends Autauga County Schools. Families must pre-register each week, however, and each child has to be registered individually. The district says meal pick-up requires an emailed ticket with a QR code, and meals are prepared based on those registrations.

Children enrolled in the district’s Summer Learning program at Pine Level Elementary School or Daniel Pratt Elementary School can also receive meals through that program, but they will not participate in the June 16 meal distributions because they will already be receiving meals through Summer Learning. That setup leaves the summer feeding plan focused on matching the right meals to the right households, without duplicating service.

The food itself is coming from Boozer Farms, Riley Creek Farms, Ferguson Farms and Evans Farms. Boozer Farms, based in Chilton County, said it focuses on fresh local produce and partnerships with other local farms. Boozer Farms will supply squash, zucchini and cucumbers; Riley Creek Farms will provide lettuce; Ferguson Farms will provide blueberries; and Evans Farms will provide peaches.

The Alabama Farm to School Program says that kind of sourcing helps schools strengthen support for farmers while finding local suppliers for cafeterias. Through its Farm to School Incentive Program, schools can be reimbursed 20 cents per meal component when they serve Alabama-sourced items. For the 2024-2025 school year, the state received $550,000 for the incentive program, with a $20,000 cap per school food authority and a $500 minimum claim threshold.

Autauga County Schools’ Child Nutrition Program says it serves more than one million lunches and 450,000 breakfasts each year, giving the summer effort a broad base of experience and scale. The Alabama Department of Agriculture and Industries says it also works with the North Alabama Food Bank, the Alabama Farmers Federation, the State Department of Education and local schools to expand local produce sales to school cafeterias. For Autauga County families, the summer meal program is both a household food lifeline and a way to keep more school food dollars circulating through nearby farms.