More and more of what appears on city students' lunch trays is coming from New York farmers. NY1's Lindsey Christ filed the following report.

It's a new, locally sourced hamburger earning rave reviews. But you don't need a reservation to try it. Just be a public school student. 

"It was really delicious. It was very good," said one student. 

"By far the best burger I've had in school," said another.

The patty, the bun and almost everything else on these trays comes from New York State. But it wasn't easy to get it here.

"It was hard," said Eric Goldstein of the city's Department of Education. "What was happening is, our burger was made from cows from New York and Pennsylvania and Ohio and all these different places, and we wanted to create a burger that was just from New York State farmers and New York State cows." 

Last year, the city began serving some locally sourced food in public schools every Thursday to promote healthy eating haibits and environmental awareness. But officials realized they didn't have enough New York meat to anchor the meal.

Using its purchasing power as the nation's second-largest meal program outside the military, the city's School Food department worked with upstate cattle farms to develop its own burger.

"We took the whole team. We went to the slaughterhouse. We saw the whole process. We really had to wear boots and all of that sort of stuff to get down and talk to the farmers, understand how the auction process works," Goldstein said.

School Food served half a million of these burgers Thursday across the city. The new meat will be on the menu four times this year. They hope to add more days next year. 

"For New York farmers, there is a great customer, a great outlet. When it comes to growing the upstate economy, New York State's overall health and the health of our young people in schools, that's a win-win situation all the way around," said state Agricultural Commissioner Richard Ball.

The local burger does cost more, about 10 extra cents a serving, which adds up to $200,000 for the four times it's on the menu this year. But the kids we spoke with at PS 96 in East Harlem said it tasted much better. 

"You know how the school don't really serve good food like that. And like it's really, I feel, we feel thankful that we get to have the opportunity to eat the burger," said Jaquan Chisholm, a sixth grader at PS 96.