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Abstract
Farm-to-School (F2S) programs are gaining attention
for many reasons, one of which is the recognition that
they could positively influence the trend of increasing
prevalence of childhood overweight and obesity. Of
the F2S programs that have been evaluated, most
have demonstrated increased selection or intake
of fruits and vegetables by students following the
incorporation of farm produce into school salad bars,
meal selections, or class-based education. With that
said, the wide range of activities that are part of
typical F2S programs makes it difficult to pinpoint
which components have the greatest potential to
improve student’s health behaviors. Within the field
of nutrition education, theory-based interventions
that target what we know to be the key underlying
factors influencing health behavior are considered to
offer the most promise.
Therefore, this paper explores how components of
Vermont F2S programs address key constructs of the
Social Cognitive Theory. The types of activities that
are part of F2S are found to touch upon many of the
theoretical constructs in the Social Cognitive Theory,
leading to the conclusion that F2S programs have
great potential to facilitate movement towards desired
dietary changes. However, in the current approach, the
likelihood is low that a set of activities in any one F2S
program addresses multiple constructs of the theory
in a systematic manner. Hence, a more intentional
inclusion of diverse activities would likely be beneficial.
More research is needed to test these assertions.