Public School Lunches Lose Fat But Gain In Price
Plum paste has replaced lard, and broccoli tops pizza instead of pepperoni.
Of course, tacos don’t have the same zip with ground turkey, and the paste in brownies makes them look gray. But health is being given a higher priority in public school lunches than taste.
“The problem for us is finding a meal students will eat,” said Rick Skinner, head of Spokane School District 81 food service. “When you reduce fat, you will lose some of the taste.”
You will also pay more. District 81’s school lunch prices jumped by about a quarter: to $1.75 from $1.50 at the high school; to $1.50 from $1.25 at the middle school; and to $1.15 from $1 at the elementary school.
In Riverside, lunch prices also increased for upper grade lunches, from $1.50 to $1.75. Adult lunches increased to $2.50 from $2.25. Elementary lunches rose to $1.50 from $1.35. Breakfast prices increased 5 cents.
School lunch prices won’t change this year in Mead, Deer Park and Nine Mile Falls schools.
In Spokane, meal rates were raised in part to pay for the higher prices on the low-fat food required by the USDA. Low-fat cheese and 18 percent fat beef cost more than the less healthy option, Skinner said.
Gone are creamy ranch dressings; all salad dressings are low-fat. Two percent milk is rarely served. Even chocolate milk is low-fat.
“We have discussed tofu,” said Skinner. “It’s just too expensive at this time.
At least some students appreciate the changes. A handful of North Central High School vegetarians requested last year that Skinner provide more no-meat lunches.
Nate Fewel, a vegetarian who is NC student body president, said there are now more options. Peppers and cucumbers were added to the sandwich bar, and students can now order veggie calzones.
But carnivores are still in charge, Fewel says. Even minestrone soups have beef.
Many of his friends tire of the few options and decide not to eat, Fewel said.
“There are more and more vegetarians and I’d like to see more vegetarian things avail,” he said. “If you are a vegetarian, you are kinda stuck. What are you going to do, not eat?”
, DataTimes