(1) "Commissioner of agriculture" means the commissioner of agriculture created in section 24-1-123, C.R.S.

(2) "Commissioner of education" shall have the same meaning as set forth in section 22-2-102.

(3) "Department of agriculture" means the department of agriculture created in section 24-1-123, C.R.S.

(4) "Department of education" means the department of education created in section 24-1-115, C.R.S.

(5) "Department of public health and environment" means the department of public health and environment created in section 25-1-102, C.R.S.

(6) "Executive director of the Colorado commission on higher education" means the executive director appointed pursuant to section 24-1-114, C.R.S.

(7) "Farm-to-school program" means a program that encourages or incentivizes the acquisition and use of locally grown, produced, and processed agricultural products by schools in order to provide healthy, local food products to students and benefit the state agricultural industry. A farm-to-school program may include the following components:

(a) Serving food to Colorado's schoolchildren and adults that is fresh and as nutritious as possible;

(b) Maximizing use of fresh food that is locally grown, produced, and processed;

(c) Educating students about healthy eating habits through nutrition education, including using hands-on techniques to make connections between farming and the foods that students consume;

(d) Increasing the size and stability of farmers' direct sales markets;

(e) Increasing participation in United States department of agriculture school meal programs by increasing the selection of food available to students;

(f) Providing outreach and guidance to farmers concerning the value of, and procedures for, selling their agricultural products to interested schools;

(g) Developing and regularly updating an internet database of farmers interested in selling their agricultural products to schools, including the types and yields of agricultural products the farmers want to sell and the time periods that farmers want to sell;

(h) Promoting state agriculture and farm products to children through school meal and classroom programs;

(i) Identifying and promoting the critical component of individual farm-to-school programs and advising state agencies on needed actions and strategies to implement this article;

(j) Conducting workshops and training sessions, and providing professional development and technical advice, to schools' food service directors, school personnel, farmers, produce distributors, and produce processors regarding the demand for and availability of Colorado farm products and helping teachers educate students about nutrition, obesity prevention, coping with allergies, and farm-to-school connections;

(k) Providing leadership at the state level to encourage school districts to develop and improve school nutrition using locally grown, farm-fresh products; and

(l) Establishing partnerships with public and nonprofit sources to implement a public engagement campaign and establishing a structure to facilitate communication between farmers and school districts.

(8) "School" includes institutions of higher education.