A USDA program will soon come to an end.

That's help get fresh local food into school cafeterias.

The local food for schools program began in 2022 to help ease supply chain disruptions caused by the pandemic.

There had been plans to extend it for another three years, which meant $5.8 million for Kentucky.

That funding was recently cut by the Trump administration.

Laura Rogers learns more about the impact of LFS and a central Kentucky producer who has seen its advantages.

Both my wife and I have always felt very strongly about nutrition.

High school track coach Jonathan Vaughn and his wife, Molly, are former college athletes.

The less processed foods we have and the more natural local produce and meats and other foods that we have, the healthier our kids are going to be.

Born in Adair County, farmer has been helping to keep Kentucky kids healthy, supplying his produce to school cafeterias and at least seven counties.

The schools are telling me that the kids love it.

The farmer appreciates it, too.

Vaughn says it helped his new operation survive the winter season.

Literally, it saved the business.

It was decision making time.

Once I got into the school system.

I'm like, okay, this will hold us until summer when we can grow more and provide for restaurants and individuals.

The Kentucky Department of Agriculture administered the USDA Local Food for schools program, with participation from more than 200 farmers and 90 school districts.

We received notification from that office that the grant had been ended in that it would no longer be available.

The Bowling Green Independent School District has been purchasing food from local farmers for a decade.

This grant has helped them spend more.

I enjoy being able to tell my babies that the lettuce they're eating in their salad bar every day is grown in Fountain Run, Kentucky or in Benton, Kentucky.

We take pride in making sure that we are supporting our Commonwealth.

The school district serves 3800 daily meals, which include vegetables from area farms like Need More Acres and beef from Hickory Flat Farm.

What it's like the LFS allows us to capitalize on sustaining our community.

Having those partnerships locally, providing those nutrient dense food items to our students.

But it does come at an expense.

Emerson says every penny counts when budgeting for school meals is more expensive to buy local, because it's a small production versus buying from a big manufacturer.

It's a high quality, high cost product.

It's completely straight out of the field, and I think that's so good for our kids because it's not anything that's been sitting on a shelf or it's been ripened somewhere else.

It's straight out of our dirt and coming right to you.

Beth Miller is food service director at Metcalf County Schools, a small rural district with less than 1500 students.

Every summer, we receive about 1,000 pounds of blueberries from and then county producer will buy a literal ton of apples from him as well.

Metcalf County has received about $27,000 in LFS funding in the past two years, she says, spending that in the local community has a big economic impact.

Not only is it feeding our kids, but you're paying a local farmer or a local producer to make those things and it just continues the economy in your area.

That's putting the funds back in his pocket as well.

The Kentucky Department of Agriculture says the LFS program has, quote, significantly supported Kentucky agriculture and delivered fresh local products to our communities in need.

KDa remains dedicated to these goals and to our state's farmers.

We are optimistic that this and future administrations will prioritize similar initiatives.

We're really hoping, praying and positively thinking that the grant will be renewed in some form or fashion.

John Vaughn is optimistic those efforts will continue.

I also feel like part of the new administration is actually very pro nutritional food, local food, and he hopes to see an expansion of endeavors to get that local, nutritious food into schools.

For Kentucky Edition, I'm Laura Rogers.

When you sit, you sit.

The school districts we spoke with say they will still spend money locally as much as they're able.

The Kentucky Department of Agriculture says it's working on new opportunities to advance these efforts.

The state was awarded more than $3 million for the Local Foods for schools agreement, which is scheduled to end April 30th.