Happy National Farm to School Month! We wanted to share an update on 10 Cents a Meal for Michigan’s Kids & Farms, Michigan’s local food incentive program that provides schools, early care and education (ECE) centers, and other organizations participating in USDA Child Nutrition programs with match funding up to 10 cents a meal to purchase and serve Michigan-grown fruits, vegetables, and dry beans. 10 Cents a Meal is implemented by the Michigan Department of Education (MDE).

The application is expected to open very soon.
There is $9.3 million in funding this program year.

Now is the time to start reaching out to prospective grantees who could benefit from this program or think about applying if you are eligible for the grant. Please see the following handouts and information below to forward on to your network and prospective grantees:

2022-2023 Application COMING SOON General Handout

2022-2023 Application COMING SOON ECE Handout 

10 Cents a Meal Fact Sheet

Who’s eligible? Any sponsor feeding children with a USDA child nutrition program such as:

• Schools (public, public school academies, or private)
• Early care and education centers (learn more about ECE eligibility here)
• After-school programs
• Residential youth programs
• Community organizations

Interested? What now?

• Sign up for the 10 Cents a Meal newsletter, we will send out more info on the application when available: tencentsmichigan.org/supporters_sign_up.
• Learn more about the program in this training. The training will be required to apply.
• Save your invoices! Any invoice information for purchases of eligible foods dating back to September 1, 2022 will be reimbursable for the 2022-2023 program year.
• Visit our website to learn more about 10 Cents a Meal!

Some important info for this year’s program: 

• 10 Cents a Meal funds can be used for supportive activities such as taste tests of local food, or other educational activities that use local food.
• The reimbursement process will be simplified.
  • Meal counts will not be required to be submitted with invoice information.
• The “10 Cents” aspect will be used in calculating the max grant award… per MDE: Sponsors will be eligible for a total grant that is 10 cents times every meal served last year.

Once the link for the application and any other application resources are available they will be uploaded to tencentsmichigan.org and sent out in the 10 Cents a Meal newsletter. Make sure to sign up to receive updates! 

Thanks so much! Feel free to reach out with any questions or concerns.  

Program Contacts:

Questions about the application or program may be directed to Wendy Crowley at [email protected] 

Additional Program Contacts:

Melanie Wong, Groundwork Center for Resilient Communities, [email protected]

Colleen Matts, MSU Center for Regional Food Systems, [email protected]

Megan McManus, MSU Center for Regional Food Systems, [email protected]

Lori Yelton, Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, [email protected]