School Food Delivery Program (SFD)
What is SFD?
SFD offers weekly deliveries of 2 different fresh produce items, with the opportunity to purchase additional supplementary items at competitive pricing through our distributors online ordering system.
- Items are delivered whole and unwashed
- All schools follow the same menu, found here
- Substitutes will only be provided for allergies
Benefits of Participating
- Receive a variety of high quality and fresh vegetables and fruit (locally sourced when possible)
- Produce is procured from safe sources and delivered in compliance with food safety regulations
- SFD provides a direct avenue for food donations to reach schools easily and safely, if and when these opportunities arise, Student Nutrition Programs participating in SFD will be recipients
History of SFD
In 2020.21 the Ontario Student Nutrition Program – Southwest Region (OSNP – SW) rolled out a special, new COVID-19 School Food Delivery Program (SFD) as part of our COVID-19 response. We understood that schools would encounter challenges when attempting to purchase safe, affordable, pre–packaged food and produce items to operate their student nutrition programs (SNP). Schools had the chance to opt-out of receiving OSNP grant funds and instead participate in the OSNP SFD program.
Delivery Partner
Produce Express, located in Woodstock Ontario, services all SFD schools in the OSNP Southwest Region. Produce Express is dedicated to providing fresh, high quality, and local produce when possible to Student Nutrition Programs! Check out their school page here
Keep an eye out for the Produce Express truck coming your way!
SFD in 2023.24
2023.24 Schedule
- Phase 1: October, November, December
- Deliveries begin the week of Oct 2! Check your school’s delivery day here
- Welcome Aboard Pkg and Refrigeration Survey
- Phase 2: January, February, March
- Phase 3: April, May, June
Requirements to Participate
To participate in the SFD program, schools must:
- Forego their OSNP grant deposit, receiving fresh produce in its place
- Buy-in to SFD as OSNP grant funds cover the cost of approximately 1.5 produce items per week, leaving school buy-in to cover the remaining balance. School buy-in is new to the 2023.24 school year due to increased costs and absence of emergency funds seen in the past 3 school years.
In the 2022.23 school year, fresh produce items were procured at an average of $0.41 per unit. Per unit costs change based on the season, variety of items offered, and, of course, inflation.
|———–Cost of 2 fresh produce items per week. Approximately $0.82 per week ————|
|———– Covered by OSNP grant allocation ————|
Approximately $0.39 – $0.65 per student per week depending on number of days program is served
|————————|
Required school buy-in
School Buy-In Instructions
At the beginning of each phase, our delivery partner, Produce Express, will invoice SFD schools. Your CDC will let you know your buy-in amount before hand and can answer any questions! Buy-in amounts may change from phase to phase with the changing per unit cost of fresh produce.
SFD Participation 2023.24 School Year
| Community | # of SFD Sites | # of Sites Identified as high need by the Ministry | Average Daily Participation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chatham-Kent | 18 | 5 | 3693 |
| Elgin | 14 | 7 | 4396 |
| Grey-Bruce | 24 | 13 | 7298 |
| Huron-Perth | 38 | 13 | 6490 |
| London-Middlesex | 52 | 38 | 12338 |
| Oxford | 19 | 5 | 7606 |
| Sarnia-Lambton | 23 | 9 | 4757 |
| Windsor-Essex | 57 | 45 | 15901 |
| Totals | 246 | 135 | 62479 |