State officials from the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD) and the Michigan Office of Nutrition Services visited Dearborn Public Schools on Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2026 to celebrate the district’s work to bring more locally grown food to students through the Good Food for Michigan Project.
Dearborn Public Schools, the third-largest school district in the state, serves about 20,000 students at more than 30 sites and provides more than 3 million meals each year. The district recently received a Good Food for Michigan grant to offer students more food grown and produced in the state.
“Supporting Michigan farmers means creating strong and dependable markets for the food they grow,” said Tim Boring, director ofMDARD. “Schools, hospitals and other institutions have tremendous purchasing power. When they buy Michigan-grown food, they are helping create demand for our farmers while also supporting local businesses.”
Boring joined Dr. Deanne Kelleher,director of theOffice of Nutrition Services at the Michigan Department of Education, and Dearborn Public Schools superintendent Mike Esseily on Wednesday at Henry Ford Early College to celebrate the start of a new school year and the district’s recent grant from the Good Food for Michigan Project.
“We have a great opportunity to look at our food purchasing practices through a different lens and see where we can offer more Michigan-grown and produced food,” Esseily said. “Good nutrition is the foundation of a great education. With the help of the Good Food for Michigan Project, we are taking a big step toward offering more locally grown and produced food.”
Dearborn Public Schools received a $460,565 grant and support services from the Good Food for Michigan Project to increase the amount of Michigan-grown and produced foods it serves at more than 30 sites across the district. The investment also will help the district to further develop relationships with farmers in the region.
The partnership will also provide an opportunity to work with Southwest Food Excellence, a national company that specializes in culinary services for schools. They will work together to increase the volume of healthy Michigan food served at Dearborn and boost the district’s capacity to partner with Michigan farmers.
The Office of Nutrition Services at the Michigan Department of Education works with schools and child nutrition programs to provide healthy meals to Michigan children and help connect schools with Michigan farmers and food suppliers. Its Farm to Program Directory helps schools and other child nutrition programs identify suppliers of Michigan-grown food.
“School meals are an important part of the school day for Michigan children, and school nutrition professionals play an essential role in making sure students have the food they need to learn, grow and thrive,” Kelleher said. “When schools buy more Michigan-grown food, they support that mission and connect students with local farmers and food producers.”
The Good Food for Michigan Project connects schools, hospitals and other institutions to grower networks established by MDARD and the Michigan State University Center for Regional Food Systems.
This summer, the project unveiled the Good Food for Michigan pledge, which allows organizations and institutions to publicly commit to Good Food Purchasing and take steps that fit their current capacity and goals. Since that announcement, 32 schools, hospitals, community organizations and other institutions across Michigan have signed the pledge.
“With more than two dozen organizations signing the pledge, we are seeing a high interest in taking steps to buy local food from local producers,” said Melanie Tran, the Michigan impact manager at the Center for Good Food Purchasing. “We are excited to continue taking steps toward putting more Michigan-grown food on tables across the state.”
The Good Food for Michigan pledge map shows the location of pledge signers across the state and it will be updated as more Michigan organizations sign the pledge. Organizations and individuals interested in becoming part of the effort can learn more about Good Food for Michigan and sign the Good Food for Michigan pledge on the website.
Dining and Cooking