Montana Harvest of the Month
Accessing Materials + Information
The Montana Harvest of the Month website has moved. Please visit mtharvestofthemonth.org for more information and to access the materials. Registered sites will receive login credentials to access monthly materials.
About Harvest of the Month
The Montana Harvest of the Month program showcases Montana grown foods in Montana communities. Montana Harvest of the Month is open to K-12 schools, afterschool programs, Summer Food Service Programs, early care and education facilities, and healthcare institutions in Montana. This program is a collaboration between the Montana Office of Public Instruction, Montana Team Nutrition Program, National Center for Appropriate Technology, Montana State University Extension, Gallatin Valley Farm to School, FoodCorps Montana, and Montana Department of Agriculture.
Funds were provided in part by USDA Team Nutrition Training grants, USDA funds, USDA
Farm to School grants, Montana Healthcare Foundation, Northern Pulse Growers Association,
Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services, Montana School Nutrition Association,
Montana Department of Agriculture Specialty Crop Block Grant, Montana Grains Foundation,
Dairy MAX, and Montana Pulse Crop Committee.
Project evaluation is led by Dr. Carmen Byker Shanks of the Food and Health Lab at Montana State University. Original artwork was created by Anthony Maughan.
Each month, participating sites focus on promoting one locally grown item (e.g., winter squash) by serving it in at least one meal, snack, or a la carte offering, and displaying or distributing HOM materials. Additionally, schools and early care and education settings participate by offering taste tests to students and doing educational lessons and activities. Montana Harvest of the Month is a perfect way to launch or grow a farm to school or farm to cafeteria program as it provides an easy framework to follow and ready-to-use materials. Participating sites will receive a free packet of materials (includes posters and cafeteria, educator, and home handouts) as well as guides, additional resources, and training. The two primary goals for this program are to expose children and adults to new, healthy foods and to support Montana’s farmers and ranchers.
