Our interest in certain products is driven by not only student interest level, but also by seasonal availability and USDA regulations. Menu and recipe development Cheney Public Schools currently uses a four week cycle menu for main entrée items with a one week cycle menu for the salad bar. Our salad bar menu will change to a longer cycle to incorporate more local produce. We currently serve carrots, apples, sweet potatoes, and red potatoes, all of which can be locally procured in abundance throughout the year. We plan on modifying our current menu to incorporate more local ingredients. Service & Promotion Cheney Public Schools launched a Farm to School marketing campaign in September 2013. Kitchen staff and student nutrition ambassadors from each building have played an integral part in promoting the events and Farm to School program. The campaign includes collateral material development for parents, staff and students (see attached) for Farm to School and its two primary events: Harvest of the Month and Your State on Your Plate. Website presence has been established for the program on the district nutrition services page with links to all building websites. Assessment & Adjustment We have opened an email account () and plan on promoting that email to parents, teachers, and students. We will encourage positive, constructive criticism. We will also analyze our lunch counts and adjust our recipes or offerings accordingly. We will taste test new foods and recipes and ask for feedback regarding the new recipe. Feedback will be solicited via survey monkey or our email account. All You Can Eat salad bars are offered in each school. We have educated students to only take what they can consume. Theoretically we should have very minimal produce waste. This takes the cooperation of all staff involved, from teachers to custodians. Our taste tests are prepared by the nutrition department and distributed with the help of volunteers and older students during lunch. Each taste test event comes with an educator packet for the food being sampled. We then ask for real-time feedback as well as a short survey later in the day. Resources Cook for America, LJ Klink (Chef Consultant), Washington Sustainable Food and Farm Network, The National Food Management Institute.
Our interest in certain products is driven by not only student interest level, but also by seasonal availability and USDA regulations. Menu and recipe development Cheney Public Schools currently uses a four week cycle menu for main entrée items with a one week cycle menu for the salad bar. Our salad bar menu will change to a longer cycle to incorporate more local produce. We currently serve carrots, apples, sweet potatoes, and red potatoes, all of which can be locally procured in abundance throughout the year. We plan on modifying our current menu to incorporate more local ingredients. Service & Promotion Cheney Public Schools launched a Farm to School marketing campaign in September 2013. Kitchen staff and student nutrition ambassadors from each building have played an integral part in promoting the events and Farm to School program. The campaign includes collateral material development for parents, staff and students (see attached) for Farm to School and its two primary events: Harvest of the Month and Your State on Your Plate. Website presence has been established for the program on the district nutrition services page with links to all building websites. Assessment & Adjustment We have opened an email account () and plan on promoting that email to parents, teachers, and students. We will encourage positive, constructive criticism. We will also analyze our lunch counts and adjust our recipes or offerings accordingly. We will taste test new foods and recipes and ask for feedback regarding the new recipe. Feedback will be solicited via survey monkey or our email account. All You Can Eat salad bars are offered in each school. We have educated students to only take what they can consume. Theoretically we should have very minimal produce waste. This takes the cooperation of all staff involved, from teachers to custodians. Our taste tests are prepared by the nutrition department and distributed with the help of volunteers and older students during lunch. Each taste test event comes with an educator packet for the food being sampled. We then ask for real-time feedback as well as a short survey later in the day. Resources Cook for America, LJ Klink (Chef Consultant), Washington Sustainable Food and Farm Network, The National Food Management Institute.