Sec. 12.0026. INTERAGENCY FARM-TO-SCHOOL COORDINATION TASK FORCE. (a) To promote a healthy diet for schoolchildren and the business of small to mid-sized local farms and ranches, the interagency farm-to-school coordination task force shall develop and implement a plan to facilitate the availability of locally grown food products in public schools.
(b) The task force is composed of:
(1) a representative of:
(A) the department, appointed by the commissioner;
(B) the Texas Education Agency, appointed by the commissioner of education; and
(C) the Department of State Health Services, appointed by the commissioner of state health services; and
(2) at least one representative of each of the following groups, appointed by the commissioner:
(A) fruit and vegetable producer organizations;
(B) school food service organizations;
(C) food distribution businesses;
(D) child nutrition and advocacy organizations;
(E) parent organizations;
(F) educational institutions that conduct research in the areas of agriculture and nutrition; and
(G) health nutrition educators who serve school districts.
(c) A member of the task force serves at the will of the official who appointed the member.
(d) The representative of the department serves as presiding officer. The task force may elect other necessary officers from its members.
(e) The task force shall meet at the call of the presiding officer.
(f) The agency whose commissioner appoints a member is responsible for the expenses of a member's service on the task force. A member of the task force is not entitled to additional compensation for serving on the task force.
(g) Each appropriate agency or group represented on the task force shall provide the personnel and resources necessary to implement a task force measure under this section.
(h) The task force shall:
(1) design new education resources, or review or update existing resources, on nutrition and food education that may be used by schools and school districts;
(2) expand food-focused experiential education programs;
(3) offer assistance in identifying funding sources and grants that allow schools and school districts to recover the costs associated with purchasing locally grown food products;
(4) develop a database of available locally grown food products for use by school food service agencies that includes contact and purchasing information for the products;
(5) identify, design, or make available training programs to enable local farmers and ranchers to market their products to schools and school districts, including programs related to:
(A) crop production;
(B) marketing of crops;
(C) postharvest handling of crops;
(D) food safety;
(E) business management;
(F) liability and risk management; and
(G) other topics deemed appropriate by the task force;
(6) advise schools and school districts on methods by which a school or school district may improve its facilities to allow for the use of minimally processed, fresh, and locally produced foods in school meals;
(7) provide technical assistance to school food service agencies to establish procedures, recipes, menu rotations, and other internal processes that accommodate the use of locally grown foods in public schools;
(8) offer advanced skills development training to school food service employees regarding the proper methods of handling, preparing, and serving locally grown foods; and
(9) conduct any other activity considered by the task force as necessary to achieve its goals under this section.
(i) The task force may solicit and accept gifts, grants, and donations from public and private entities to use for the purposes of this section.
(j) The task force may use any existing program or procedure that it determines to be useful in performing its duties under this section.
Added by Acts 2009, 81st Leg., R.S., Ch. 1376 (S.B. 1027), Sec. 1, eff. September 1, 2009.
Structure Texas Statutes
Title 2 - Department of Agriculture
Chapter 12 - Powers and Duties
Section 12.001. Execution of Laws
Section 12.0011. Authority to Enter Into Cooperative Agreements
Section 12.002. Development of Agriculture
Section 12.0025. Nutrition Programs
Section 12.0026. Interagency Farm-to-School Coordination Task Force
Section 12.0027. Nutrition Outreach Program
Section 12.0029. Summer Nutrition Programs
Section 12.003. Agricultural Societies
Section 12.006. Development of Domestic and Foreign Markets
Section 12.007. Plant Diseases and Pests
Section 12.010. Correspondence With Government Agencies and Others
Section 12.011. Agricultural Resource Statistics
Section 12.0135. Conflict Provisions
Section 12.0145. Submission of Proposed Fee Schedule
Section 12.015. Cooperation With Texas a & M University and Experiment Stations
Section 12.0175. "Go-Texan" Program
Section 12.0176. Cooperation With Certain Commodity Producers Boards
Section 12.0177. Texas Nursery and Floral Account
Section 12.020. Administrative Penalties
Section 12.0201. License Sanctions
Section 12.0202. Administrative Hearings
Section 12.0203. Negotiated Rulemaking and Alternative Dispute Resolution
Section 12.0204. Advisory Committees
Section 12.0205. Coordination of Consumer Protection Enforcement With Office of Attorney General
Section 12.021. Fee for Phytosanitation Inspection; Issuance of Certificate
Section 12.022. Authority to Solicit and Accept Gifts, Grants, and Donations
Section 12.023. Expiration of Registration or Licenses
Section 12.024. Late Renewal of License or Registration
Section 12.025. Program Accessibility Plan
Section 12.026. Public Interest Information
Section 12.0261. Administrative Procedure
Section 12.027. Economic Development Program
Section 12.0271. Rural Economic Development and Investment Program
Section 12.0272. Texas Economic Development Fund
Section 12.0273. Limitations on Loans and Grants From Texas Economic Development Fund
Section 12.028. Competitive Bidding or Advertising
Section 12.029. Minority and Female-Owned Business Contracts
Section 12.031. Advertising, Publications, and Fees
Section 12.032. Cooperation With State Office of Administrative Hearings
Section 12.033. Multiple Licenses
Section 12.034. Refund or Waiver of Fees
Section 12.035. Notice to Examinee
Section 12.036. Licensing Out-of-State Applicants
Section 12.037. Continuing Education
Section 12.038. Office of Rural Affairs
Section 12.039. Certain Wine Produced or Bottled in This State
Section 12.040. Texas Certified Retirement Community Program
Section 12.041. School Breakfast and Lunch Program
Section 12.042. Home-Delivered Meal Grant Program
Section 12.046. Texas Rural Investment Fund
Section 12.047. Use of Technology
Section 12.048. Obtaining Criminal History Record Information
Section 12.050. Trade Agricultural Inspection Grant Program
Section 12.051. Farmer Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Program