Home Farm-to-Institution Symposium

Farm-to-Institution Symposium

Reimagining Institutional Food Systems for Healthier People and Planet

Presented by Rodale Institute & University of Virginia
October 9, 2025 | Charlottesville, VA

Join us for a one-day immersive symposium convening institutional leaders and food systems innovators to explore farm-to-institution models as powerful levers for change. From universities and healthcare systems to food hubs and farmers, we’re bringing together the people rethinking how land, procurement, and public health intersect.

If you are an institutional leader, food procurement team, sustainability professional, farmer, researcher, or advocate, this event is for you!

Location: Great Hall, Garrett Hall – Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy
Address: 235 McCormick Road, Charlottesville, VA 22903
Time: 8:30 AM – 4:30 PM
Cost: Free (includes lunch and refreshments)

Presented in partnership with:

What to Expect

  • Engaging roundtable-style sessions with leading voices in procurement, regenerative organic agriculture, and sustainability
  • Facilitated discussions on models, challenges, and opportunities for transforming institutional food systems
  • Opportunities for collaboration and guidance with Rodale Institute’s Consulting Team
  • A delicious, locally sourced lunch and refreshments throughout the day
  • Space for networking, dialogue, and connection

Sessions at a Glance (subject to change)

Session 1: Levers for Change: Farm-to-Institution Models

Explore how institutional purchasing and land use can transform food systems, support farmers, and restore soil and public health.

Session 2: Flexible Procurement and Building Pipelines

Unpack how procurement standards can evolve to support local, regenerative food. Learn how institutions can work within existing systems to create new sourcing pathways and bring nutrient-dense, values-based foods into kitchens.

Lunch Breakouts: Interactive Group Discussions

Gather around guiding questions to surface challenges, share successes, and co-create solutions.

Session 3: Aggregation, Processing, and Pricing

Discover how aggregation, value-added processing, and pricing models can expand access to local food. We’ll explore the infrastructure, certifications, and partnerships needed to bring regional farm products into institutional kitchens at scale.

Session 4: Integration and Scale-Up: Innovation in Action

Learn from Rodale Institute’s Consulting Team in a dynamic session focused on tangible next steps for every stage of implementation.

Then join a dynamic breakout group to explore topics like: scaling from local sourcing to on-site farming, technical assistance and land access, incubator models, farm-to-institution supply chains, and more.

Draft Agenda

8:30 AM – Registration & Networking – Coffee and Tea
9:00 AM – Opening Remarks & Kick Off
9:30 AM – Session 1: Levers for Change: Farm-to-Institution Models
10:30 AM – Break & Discussion
11:00 AM – Session 2: Flexible Procurement & Building Pipelines
12:00 PM – Networking Lunch & Interactive Group Discussions
1:30 PM – Session 3: Aggregation, Processing & Pricing
2:30 PM – Break
2:45 PM – Session 4: Integration & Scale-Up: Innovation in Action (followed by breakouts)
4:00 PM – Closing Remarks
4:15 PM – End of Event

Registration

This event is free, but space is limited. Registration is on a first-come, first-served basis.


Thank you to our generous sponsors for making this event possible:

Sponsorship Opportunities

We’re proud to partner with mission-aligned organizations who are helping catalyze the future of food, farming, and health. A select number of sponsorship opportunities remain available.

To inquire about becoming a sponsor and joining a movement toward healthier institutions and regenerative food systems, contact Nadine Clopton, Regenerative Education Program Manager at nadine.clopton@rodaleinstitute.org.

 

Contact

For event and sponsorship inquiries, please contact: Nadine Clopton, Regenerative Education Program Manager, nadine.clopton@rodaleinstitute.org.

For press and media inquiries, please contact: Chloe Nouvelle, Senior Manager of Public Affairs & Communications, chloe.nouvelle@rodaleinstitute.org.