Buckeye Valley food‑service supervisor outlines rising costs and proposes 25‑cent paid‑meal increase

Stacy Peterson, Buckeye Valley’s food‑services supervisor, presented a year‑end summary to the board on June 30 and said rising food and supply costs since 2021 have forced the department to propose a modest price increase for paid student meals.

Peterson said the district operates four kitchens with 21 staff, served 204,834 lunches and 37,698 breakfasts in the 2025‑26 school year, and follows USDA guidelines that require five vegetable subcategories and caps on calories, sugar and sodium. She said full paid‑meal reimbursements to the district are approximately 40 cents for paid lunches, reduced‑price reimbursements are $2.16 and free‑meal reimbursements listed at $2.46, with additional state grants that cover reduced‑to‑free conversions in qualifying cases.

To help offset a roughly 32% increase in food and supply costs since 2021, Peterson proposed a 25‑cent increase on all paid meal prices; she noted that reduced and free meal rates are set by the state and would not change. Board members asked about equipment and staffing needs; Peterson said a middle‑school dishwasher and other multi‑year equipment replacements are on a five‑year plan and that staffing is tight but nearly fully staffed.

Why this matters: Meal programs are partially state‑ and federally funded and affect families differently by income. A small increase in paid prices would raise revenue for the program while state and federal reimbursements continue to undergird free and reduced‑price meals.

Next steps: The price change appeared in the consent/financial materials; the board acknowledged the recommendation during approval of the consent agenda and will incorporate the change into final budgeting and the five‑year forecast process.