Federal Guidelines Hike Price Of Delaware Valley School Lunches

Pike County Dispatch ^ | July 25, 2013 | Lisa Mickles

[RBW in PA]

WESTFALL — Delaware Valley School District will be making sweeping changes to their career vocational-technical department, curriculum and lunch program.

At last Thursday’s Board of Education meeting the directors voted to increase lunch prices by 10 cents for elementary, middle and high school and 25 cents for adult lunches. The new prices will be $1.85 for elementary, $2.10 for middle and high school. Adult lunches will now be $3.25. This is due in part to new federal guidelines requiring public schools that receive federal funding for free and reduced lunches to serve more costly items such as whole grains and fresh fruits and vegetables. The adjustments are part of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 plugged by Michelle Obama, which uses the updated Dietary Guidelines for Americans from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

The new federal pricing requirement of 10 cents under the “Paid Lunch Equity” provision of the Federal act, comes amid school budget cuts and a lingering recession, and is the first time the federal government has gotten into the business of cafeteria pricing since its school lunch program was established in 1946. Director Sue Schor said she was not in favor of increasing the prices unless everyone was getting the same options. She said high school parents are telling her that they run out of the good food such as chicken wraps by the time the next lunch period rolls around.

Last school year, the district began following the regulations, which left many middle and high school students hungry since they are no longer permitted to serve pasta and other high calorie intake food items. “We had to reduce our portions of five chicken nuggets to three, which leaves many middle and high school students still hungry,” said Superintendent John Bell. He said for the 2012-2013 school year, they are required to place a fruit on each tray despite the fact that many students might not eat it and probably throw it away.

For example, now the district must serve approximately 1,500 peaches tray by tray rather than just offering them to the students for the taking. Director Zachary Pearce, the most recent DV graduate on the board, said that the lunches have not changed much since he attended over five years ago, noting how most of the menu items were either chicken nuggets or corndogs. Originally, the administration requested that the lunches be raised 25 cents since they anticipated a loss due to the increased food costs, food service employee salaries, health care and pension plan increases, as well as fewer students participating in the free and reduced lunch program.

Director Pam Lutfy said she objects to the way the cafeteria budget is laid out as a separate business and how the school district pays expenses such as employee benefits, janitorial work and electric costs through the cafeteria fund rather than the general budget

[RBW in PA]

FUBO

[Col Frank Slade]

The food police strike again.

[American in Israel]

Typical Government work. Now kids are throwing away the lunches, and they cost more.

[elkfersupper]

Mickey Dee's.

When I was 12 years old and in Jr. High School, there was a bunch of us spoiled rotten kids that had itty-bitty motorbikes like Yamaha 80's and Honda 50's. On a 30 minute lunch break, about 50 of us would hotrod across town and invade Burger King (which was not what it is today in the early 1960's). Anything was better than cafeteria food and it was only slightly more expensive.

[SgtHooper]

The costs are simply shoring up the teachers pensions.

[Lurker]

We used to run 10 blocks from my grade school to the local Burger Chef. Burgers were a dime.

[Grams A]

For less than this $10 a week you can send a child to school with a PB&J sandwich, a couple of homemade cookies and some kind of fruit. Or maybe some of these mothers might consider actually cooking real food for dinner with enough for leftovers to send for lunch the next day. My kids loved leftover meatloaf sandwiches. We always added lots of extras including finely chopped veggies. Filling, healthy and inexpensive. They also loved cold pizza.

Sure beats this stuff they try to feed the kids now.

[V K Lee]

Costs rise due to the addition of protein. obomba’s favorite—dog meat or the yummy cricket souffle, grasshoppers and ants added for no additional charge.