K-12 School Foodservice Partner X-Change

Every day, 31 million children participate in National School Lunch Program and must exit their lunch line with a fruit or vegetable on their plate.

Schools are also required to serve a variety of produce options each week, with many offering entrée salads, fresh vegetable side-dishes, grab n’ go fruit and veggies, and even a return to self-serve salad bars. In addition to lunch, many K-12 schools also offer breakfast, in-class fresh fruit and vegetable snacks, and an after-school supper program.

K-12 schools are large volume foodservice buyers that serve tens-of-thousands of meals to schoolchildren every day. They are often the “largest restaurant in town” and play an important role to introduce kids to a variety of fresh produce, potentially shaping their comfort-level (and taste preferences) for years to come.

To connect produce suppliers with forward-thinking K-12 menu planers, the International Fresh Produce Association (IFPA) has created a School Foodservice Partner X-Change.

The Partner X-Change consists of virtual “speed dating” meetings where K-12 buyers can share about their menu planning and procurement processes, as well as discuss the types of produce they are interested in serving. Produce growers and fresh-cut processors can ask questions, while also sharing about their products, including individually wrapped single-portions and volume foodservice packs.

IFPA organizes the meetings and prepares a schedule where industry participants meet virtually with approximately 10-15 school menu planners over two days. Most school participants are from the nation’s largest school districts and serve upwards of 30,000 meals each day.

Thank you to our sponsors for their support!

School Districts participating in the School Foodservice Partner X-Change

Atlanta Public Schools
Cypress-Fairbanks ISD (TX)
Douglas County School District (CO)
Eagle Mountain-Saginaw ISD (TX)
Greenville County Schools (SC)
Little Rock School District (AR)
Metro Nashville Public Schools
Montgomery County Public Schools (MD)
MSD of Wayne Township School District (IN)
NYC Dept. of Education (NY)
Richmond City Public Schools (VA)
Southwest Foodservice Excellence/SLA Management (multi-state)

Boston Public Schools (MA)
P.O.W.E.R. Buying Group (FL)
Cleveland Metro School District (OH)
Long Beach Unified School District (CA)
Clark County Schools (NV)
Louis Public Schools (MO)
East Baton Rouge Parish Schools (LA)
West Ada Public Schools (ID)
Fairfax County Schools (VA)
Jackson Public Schools (MS)
Baltimore City Public Schools (MD)

Omaha Public Schools (NE)
Wake County Schools (NC)
Oklahoma City Public Schools (OK)
Cobb County School District (GA)
Capistrano Unified School District (CA)
Aurora Public Schools (CO)
Sodexo
Houston ISD (TX)
West Ada Public Schools (ID)
Montgomery County Public Schools (MD)
North East ISD (TX)
Leon County Schools (FL)
Urban School Food Alliance
Detroit Public Schools Community District
Elk Grove Unified School District (CA)

Tucson Unified School District
Cupertino Union School District
Tahoe-Truckee School District
Greeley-Evans Weld County District 6
Fulton County Public Schools
Hillsborough County Schools
Des Moines Public Schools
West New York School District
New York City Dept. of Education
Newburgh Enlarged City Schools
Cincinnati Public Schools
Austin Independent School District
Dallas Independent School District
Houston Independent School District
Utica Community Schools
Union Public Schools
ARAMARK K-12
Kindercare/Learning Care Group

Questions?

Andrew Marshall

Wholesaler-Distributor Relations and External Partnerships

International Fresh Produce Association

+1 (202) 303-3407 Email Andrew Marshall

Interested in Sponsoring?

Robyn Florio

Sales and Engagement Manager

Member Engagement & Business Development

+1(302)607-2152 Email Robyn Florio

K-12 School Foodservice Partner X-Change

Thank you to our sponsors for their support!

2025 School Participants

2024 School Participants

2023 School Participants

2022 School Participants

Questions?

Interested in Sponsoring?