A new farm-to-school initiative aims to make students at Ellenville Central School District healthier.

That announcement came from state Senator Jen Metzger, the Rondout Valley Growers Association, Ellenville Regional Rural Health Network, and the Cornell Cooperative Extension of Ulster County. These organizations form the farm-to-school partnership.

Two grants have been awarded to Ellenville Regional Rural Health Network, one federal and one from the state.

The first grant will allow the partners to hire a farm-to-school specialist, and create a plan to give the Ellenville Central School District better access to locally grown produce for the meals fed to students. The second grant will create the “Just a Bite” program in the elementary school, where students will sample new produce from local farms every month to help introduce them to healthy food options.

"We have to be worried about the input into our children's bodies. Not just the educational input, not just the knowledge at the schools, but what they are putting into their bodies, because it is so important in their ability to learn," said State Senator Jen Metzger.

Another main goal of the farm-to-school initiative is to combat childhood obesity, which the CEO of Ellenville Regional Hospital says is statistically higher in Ulster County.