When more students eat school lunch, the quality of the lunch improves, at least in districts like Austin Independent School District, which had another turn in the national press this week.
School lunch advocate Jennifer Gaddis wrote an op-ed in the New York Times called “Why Are You Still Packing Lunch for Your Kids?” about some of the same issues I’ve been writing about locally.
The gist: In many areas of the country, school lunch has improved to the point that parents who pack lunches for their kids should at least consider having their students eat the school lunch a few times a week.
Increased participation means bigger buying power to improve the quality of ingredients served, which AISD food services and nutrition director Anneliese Tanner has made a priority since taking over the job five years ago.
Tanner, who was named a Good Food Institutional Hero from the Good Food Purchasing Program last year, has been increasing the quantity of scratch-made meals and local produce used, but this week, the district announced that the more than 100 schools in the district will now be serving grass-fed ground beef.
