2025 | Local Beef Served Up at Langford School

Students at Langford Area School are getting a true taste of home this year as the district launches a new program that brings locally raised beef to school lunches. The initiative, organized entirely at the local level, connects area producers with the school kitchen to provide fresh, high-quality meat while supporting community agriculture.

Langford School Board member Cory Cole helped spearhead the effort after seeing a similar program highlighted in another South Dakota district.

“About two years ago, Faulkton’s school district posted about their local beef program,” Cole said. “Someone sent it to me, and I started looking into it. It didn’t take off right away, but it stuck in the back of my mind.”

The idea aligns with a growing movement across South Dakota and the nation to connect schools with local food sources. The South Dakota Beef to School initiative is part of a broader Farm to School effort that links students with the origins of their food, improves meal quality, and strengthens ties between schools and local producers.

Cole said the Langford effort gained traction last spring when Superintendent Shad Storley encouraged a committee to explore whether the program could work locally. Cole, along with Mike Frey and Kellie Alberts, began reaching out to area producers and community members for donations.

“Donations can be monetary or beef,” Cole explained. “We received our first animal donation from a local producer earlier this year.”

Under the program, donated beef is processed at The Meathouse in Andover, which is a USDA-certified facility that also works with other schools. The school covers the cost of processing, which takes about two weeks from start to finish.

“We talked with our head cook, Nikki Bertsch, about what kind of beef would work best for the kitchen,” Cole said. “She requested 10-pound tubes of ground beef, and that’s what we’re getting—100 percent ground beef with the leanness we request.”

The school’s first animal yielded about 530 pounds of hamburger. Cole estimates that the district will go through 2,000 to 2,500 pounds of ground beef each year, meaning four or five animals will be needed annually to keep the program running.

“Our hope is that donations will continue, and if needed, the school can purchase a local animal using meal funds,” Cole said. “As a parent, it’s pretty special knowing that beef raised and processed right here is being served to our kids.”

For Bertsch, who oversees Langford’s food service program, the benefits go beyond freshness.

“I really like knowing where the beef comes from,” she said. “This is our first year doing it, and it gives us more flexibility with menu planning. We don’t have to order as far ahead, and we know the animal was processed just 14 miles away.”

The local meat has been used in familiar student favorites such as tacos, tater tot casserole, spaghetti bake, and chili. Bertsch even put up a sign in the cafeteria to let students know when they were eating locally donated beef.

“We wanted to thank the farmer and show the kids where their food is coming from,” she said. “Knowing that makes a difference.”

The program has also encouraged the school to look at other local food opportunities. In recent years, produce grown by the school’s FFA program—including lettuce, cucumbers, tomatoes, and peppers—has been served in the lunchroom.

Storley said he is proud of the community effort behind the project.

“I’m very appreciative of everyone who helped, from the school board to our kitchen staff,” he said. “There’s really not a lot more red tape than ordering other food. It’s not about saving money; the cost is comparable. We’re doing it because it’s the right thing to do.”

Storley said community support has been strong, with more producers already expressing interest in donating animals. Another beef is scheduled to be processed soon.

“Prices are high right now, and for people to still step up and donate an animal for our kids—it means the world,” he said. “Without their generosity, this project wouldn’t have been possible.”

As the program grows, Cole hopes it will also become an educational tool for students.

“Long term, we’d like to make this part of our agricultural education,” he said. “There’s so much more to ag than just driving a tractor. Kids can learn about processing, marketing, and all the steps that go into getting food to the table.”

For now, the focus is on keeping the momentum going and continuing to serve up beef that’s truly local.

Those interested in donating beef or contributing financially to the program can contact the Langford Area School District office for more information.