The Future of School Lunch

The last year has shown just how resilient school nutrition professionals can be. As feeding our children and students is arguably the most important function of foodservice, directors have faced challenge after challenge, and they've overcome those challenges across districts in Maryland and Virginia.

So what were some of those challenges? How did directors change to continue effective service? And what are some of the changes we might continue to see in the future? Let's take a closer look.

KEEPING KIDS FED

One of the first challenges school districts faced was to keep kids fed when they were no longer in school. Particularly with economically challenged students who face food insecurity even in the best of times, our local directors continued to provide nourishment to those much-needed families. Even if we stopped our list of challenges here, it's enough to truly label our school foodservice professionals as heroes. From opening up collection points to in-home dropoff, thank you for all you've done.

BEING FLEXIBLE WITH WHERE THEY'RE FED

For school foodservice that continued in schools, where that service was provided also changed. Specifically, in some schools, lunches were delivered directly to the classrooms. This required mobile serving carts or food delivery systems that could provide safe foodservice without compromising quality. In many cases, in-room delivery was already happening before Covid. After the pandemic hit, it increased, and in many schools, this type of service might very well continue into the future. Other changes with where students are fed have been looking at outside dining options, eating in hallways to ensure social distancing, and even eating in the gymnasium.

CHANGES WITH HOW STUDENTS ARE FED

In some cases, the traditional serving line changed with some added precautions like spacing, partitions, and screens. In other cases, meal service pivoted toward foods delivered as singular servings. Individually wrapped foods (IWF) and even bagged lunches have served some school nutrition programs well. That level of service comes with its own set of challenges -- disposable utensils and packaging, for example. While IWF delivery might continue in the future, we can also expect most districts to return to more traditional serving lines (and the standard flatware that goes with it).

Looking to prepare your district's school nutrition program for the coming year? We have some ideas and solutions that can help you return to normal while also continuing to maximize the potential of some of these recent changes.