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Twin Rivers unveils Nutrition Services rebranding and new menus during National School Lunch Week
Summary
Twin Rivers Nutrition Services introduced a new branding and menu lineup, emphasized chef-led, locally sourced meals and reported serving about 5.1 million meals in 2024–25; staff previewed themed menus, expanded vegetarian options and a traveling barbecue trailer.
Twin Rivers Unified’s nutrition team presented a new brand and menu initiatives during the board meeting as part of National School Lunch Week activities.
Leslie Pring, director of nutrition services, said the department’s “promise is really to nourish every child with dignity, care, and high quality meals made with fresh local ingredients,” and described a year-long branding effort intended to elevate school meals and increase student participation. Pring said the program served more than 5,100,000 meals in 2024–25 across breakfast, lunch and supper programs and reported the district serves roughly 25,000 students each day. (Leslie Pring, presentation)
Melanie Conley, introduced as the district’s executive chef and trainer, described menu changes and service improvements intended to boost participation, including new items tested with students (carnitas bowls at secondary sites, cheeseburger mac at elementary), expanded vegetarian choices, modernized salad bars and a fresh fruit-and-vegetable program operating at more than 25 sites. Conley said early testing generated positive student reactions to new items and outlined plans for a springtime traveling barbecue trailer to rotate between sites. (Melanie Conley, presentation)
Pring and Conley also highlighted sourcing claims: presenters said approximately 80% of produce and 100% of dairy come from California or local sources, with some produce delivered from within about 100 miles. They described staff training (12 nutrition-academy classes last summer) and operational upgrades designed to shorten lines and increase access to fresh-prepared items.
The presentation included an invitation to Apple Crunch Day scheduled for Oct. 16 and a note that the board had an opportunity to sample menu items provided to trustees earlier in the meeting. Trustees and members of the public offered praise and thanks to the nutrition team for the program’s improvements.
What’s next: Nutrition Services will implement themed menus for National School Lunch Week and continue planned service upgrades and pilots; no board action was required beyond the recognition and presentation.
