Get AI Briefings, Transcripts & Alerts on Local & National Government Meetings — Forever.
Nutrition services reports 156,462 breakfasts served and expands local produce purchases
Loading...
Summary
Director Dori Pavel told the board the nutrition team served 156,462 breakfasts and 268,728 lunches (as of April 17), plans about $165,000 in local produce purchases this fiscal year, and will partner with Open Door for summer meal distribution.
Nutrition Services Director Dori Pavel and Assistant Director Maggie Schmidt gave the board an operational update on April 27. Pavel said the nutrition services team of 28 employees had served 156,462 breakfasts, 268,728 lunches and 10,980 after‑school snacks as of April 17. "We are a group of 28 remarkable, dedicated, compassionate people who feed the students of South Saint Paul breakfast and lunch each day," she said.
Pavel described a fall/winter/spring menu cycle, student taste‑testing that helps identify popular recipes (items cited include orange chicken, oven‑roasted broccoli, tortellini pasta salad and a layered taco dip), and plans to spend about $165,000 this fiscal year on domestically and locally grown fruits and vegetables. The directors said recent taste‑testing that yielded strong results will bring items such as a French toast breakfast sandwich and a beef pot roast with roasted potatoes to menus.
The team reported summer meal activity in June and July 2025, during which, with help from the Open Door mobile lunch box, they served 4,523 breakfasts and 6,043 lunches over four weeks of summer programming. Pavel invited the community to recognize National School Lunch Hero Day and to thank school nutrition staff.
Board members asked about staff training and in‑house cooking (including preparing raw chicken). Pavel said the district is training staff to build confidence with cooking techniques and that moving to more in‑house preparation is an ongoing effort.
The board thanked nutrition staff and accepted the update. No board action was required.
