Students attending schools in Lexington County School Districts One, Two, Three and Five will eat more vegetables, fruits, grains and honey as a part of a state program that incentivizes healthy eating made possible through local food sources.

Sixty-seven of South Carolina’s school districts are participating in the program, Certified SC Cafeteria, for spring 2026, including multiple Midlands districts across Lexington and surrounding counties.

Certified SC Cafeteria is made possible through $1 million in annual funding from the South Carolina General Assembly and manpower from the South Carolina Department of Agriculture and the South Carolina Department of Education, according to a press release.

“Healthy, locally grown food is more than a meal — it’s an investment in the future of every child,” State Superintendent of Education Ellen Weaver said in the press release. “Through this partnership with the Department of Agriculture, we’re proud to nourish young minds, support our farmers, and build a stronger South Carolina together.”

In total, 874 school cafeterias serving 538,066 students in kindergarten through 12th grade are consuming food from local farmers.

“Incentivizing schools to serve locally grown food helps South Carolina farmers, provides opportunities for students to learn about nutrition and agriculture, and puts more fresh, healthy food on children’s plates,” according to the press release.

Farmers can use the SC Local Food Connector at scfarmtoschool.com to share product availability and find contact information for buyers.

“The ability to offer fresh locally grown foods to our students is a win for our district,” Lexington-Richland School District Five Coordinator of Student Nutrition Shana Catoe said in a press release. “This gives us the opportunity to not only expose our students to fresh produce, we can educate them on where it is grown. Offering fresh produce shows our parents and community that we are serious about serving our students the best products available.”