Winning the K-12 Produce Market: A Playbook for Growth

February 25, 2026

The K-12 school market is a vital sales channel, but success requires a specific strategy. Whether you're a distributor selling directly to schools or a grower-shipper/processor aiming to get your products on the menu, our recent webinar provided a playbook for growth.

The session, featuring experts from IFPA, the USDA, and the Culinary Institute of America, was designed to help you navigate the unique relationship between schools, distributors, and suppliers.

Key Strategies for Your Business:

For Our Distributor Partners:

Become an Indispensable Partner, Not Just a Supplier: The webinar detailed how schools manage their complex, non-profit business. By understanding their menu planning, budget cycles, and regulatory needs, you can anticipate their demands and position yourself as a strategic partner, securing long-term loyalty and sales.
Master the USDA-DoD Fresh Program: This program has become more widely used by K-12 schools to source produce for their meal programs. We explained how it works, what's required of participating distributors, and how schools can leverage This program to source a wide variety of fresh, U.S.-grown produce.

For Our Grower, Shipper & Processor Members:

Create "Pull-Through" Demand for Your Products: This was a core focus. Since schools buy from distributors, your path to success is getting schools to ask for your products by name. The webinar provided strategies for introducing your specific items—like your branded apple slices or fresh-cut salad blends—directly to school menu planners, and also to distributors that you know service schools, like those that service schools for the USDA-DoD Fresh Program.
Make It Easy for Schools to Choose You: When you educate a school about your product's benefits and provide them with resources (like recipes, meal-pattern crediting details or nutrition info), you make their job easier. This gives them a compelling reason to request your brand from their distributor, creating a direct sales pipeline for you.

Execute Your Strategy: Member Tools for Success

Your IFPA membership provides the platform to execute this playbook. Here's how to connect with the right people and drive demand:

Connect Directly with School Buyers: The K-12 School Forum at the IFPA Foodservice Conference is your single best opportunity to generate pull-through demand. It puts you in the room with 80+ school menu planners, allowing you to showcase your products and build the relationships that get your brand requested. Also consider participation in our School Foodservice Partner X-Change, which connects produce grower-suppliers with school menu planners through virtual “speed dating” meetings.
Give Schools a Reason to Ask for Your Product: Use these Fruit & Veg School Breakfast Recipes as your sales tool. Show schools exactly how to feature your products, making it simple for them to ask their distributor for your brand. For distributors, providing this toolkit makes you an invaluable resource to your school customers.
Shape the Policies That Create Your Market: The IFPA Washington Conference (June 8-10, 2026) is where you can advocate for the programs and policies—like the USDA Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program (FFVP), DoD Fresh, and school meal produce requirements-that create stable, long-term demand for the entire industry.
Stay Ahead of Market Trends: Policy changes impact what schools can buy. Sign up for our Health & Nutrition Community updates to get exclusive analysis that helps you anticipate your customers' needs.

Webinar Recap: Your Playbook for Winning in the K-12 Produce Market

Key Strategies for Your Business:

For Our Distributor Partners:

For Our Grower, Shipper & Processor Members:

Execute Your Strategy: Member Tools for Success

Thank You to Our Sponsor

Related Resources