Extension > Family > Farm to School > Minnesota Toolkit for School Foodservice > Sourcing Food > Sourcing Cucumbers
Sourcing Cucumbers
Finding Local Food
- Local Foods Partnership online searchable database through the University of Minnesota Regional Sustainable Development Partnerships. It includes a wide range of food products from farmers mostly in northwest, western, and central Minnesota.
- The Minnesota Grown wholesale database lists Minnesota farmers interested in selling their products to schools. You can search online by product type and by region.
- The Land Stewardship Project has a Farm Directory for schools looking to purchase sustainably raised foods.
- Food Alliance Midwest is a national organization that certifies farmers who follow sustainable farming practices. Contact Bob Olson, the director of Food Alliance Midwest, for assistance in finding farmers: 651-265-3682
- Pride of the Prairie farmers have experience in selling to retail food buyers. For assistance in finding farmers, contact Terry VanDerPol: 320-269-2105.
Cucumbers are widely available in the late summer in Minnesota. Cucumbers are a frost-sensitive crop that does not store well, so their season of availability is pretty much limited to the summer and early fall. A few farmers in the state have greenhouses or high tunnels that allow them to extend the season for cucumbers.
Regulations on Buying Cucumbers Directly from Farmers
Minnesota state laws permit retail establishments and food services to purchase raw, unprocessed fruits and vegetables from any farmer who is selling the produce of his or her own farm.
Best Time to Buy
Order cucumbers before the start of school in the fall for delivery during the month of September.
Food Buying Guide Specifications
Reference: Food Buying Guide for Child Nutrition Programs; U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service
Food As Purchased (How the Product Can Be Purchased) |
PurchaseUnit (How You Should Order the Product) |
Servings per Purchase Unit (How Many Servings You Will Get Per Purchase Unit) |
Serving Size per Meal Contribution (For Each Meal Component Category) |
Amount Needed to Buy of the Purchase Units for 100 Servings |
Additional Information |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Cucumber, Fresh Whole Unpared
|
Pound
Pound |
12.4
9.71 |
¼ cup unpared, sliced vegetable
¼ cup pared vegetable sticks (about 3 sticks, 3 inch by ¾ inch sticks) |
8.1
10.3 |
1 pound AP = .84 pound ready-to-serve, unpared, sliced cucumber 1 pound AP = .81 pound (about 2 3/8 cups) ready-to-serve raw, pared cucumber sticks |
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