Say “No Thank You” to Wasted Food - School Nutrition...•“No Thank You” bin placed in...

© COPYRIGHT 2016 SCHOOL NUTRITION ASSOCIATION – #ANC16 – SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS

Say “No Thank You” to Wasted Food

Sandy HuismanAmanda Miller


Des Moines Public Schools

• 35,000 + students• 63 school sites• 40 CEP sites • 22,000 + Lunches served daily• 12,500 + Breakfast served daily• 25 Breakfast in Classroom schools (BIC)


DISCLAIMER

• Not a one fit solution for every school• Different solutions for high schools, middle schools, elementary schools, ones with special programs, etc . . .


Statement of Problem

• Every day pounds of food was being thrown away in our schools.• Not just fruits and vegetables


Food Waste in the US• Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and EPA Deputy Director Stan Meiburg announced the 1st ever national food loss and waste goal• 50% reduction by 2030

• Current food waste in the US:• Between 30‐40% of the food supply • Approximately $161 billion worth of food• In 2010, the average amount of food loss per American was 429 pounds


Why Does it Matter?

• Could have helped feed the hungry• Land, water, labor, and energy are used in producing, processing, transporting, preparing, storing, and disposing of discarded food

• Food waste is the single largest component going into municipal landfills• Generates methane, helping to make landfills the third largest source of methane

Solutions?

• Possible suggestions –

• Homeless shelters

• Feed animals• Better meal planning

• Students & Community members


Plate Waste Study

Moulton Elementary

4th graders


Plate Waste Study – Moulton Elementary 4 graders• Social Studies unit on "Environments" • Received information via the following slideshow and additional lessons provided by their teachers

• Made information posters & hung them throughout the school prior to the waste sort day


Moulton Elementary

• Students helped sort out student plate waste in the lunchroom in the proper receptacles of recycling, compost, and trash.

• Weighed the waste after each lunch period made a pictogram of the poundage of waste in each category per grade level.

• Dumped compostable food waste scraps into garden’s compost pile and topped the garden planting areas with last year's lunch waste‐ our finished compost!

What else can we do?


Feed Hungry Kids


Things to Consider

• Students are generally compassionate • Any type of food waste reduction/food rescue program should not:

• Pressure students to donate to please others• Encourage students to take food they do not plan to eat

• Prevent students from eating foods they selected for their meal

• The overall goal should be to increaseconsumption, which in turn will reduce waste


Policy Background• Federal regulations encouraging food rescue – new policy memo SP41‐2016

• EPA Food Waste Challenge• Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Act


Iowa Department of Inspections & Appeals• Any food that requires temperature control for safety cannot be reserved. Also any unpackaged food cannot be reserved.


Iowa Department of Inspections & Appeals• Packaged and Whole Fruits:• A school official inspects for package integrity and potential contamination for the non‐potentially hazardous packaged food. (there should be specific standards in place on what is accepted for donation as well as training);

• A school official inspects whole fruit for damage to the outer skin and evidence of contamination. (there should be specific standards in place on what is accepted for donation as well as training);


Iowa Department of Inspections & Appeals• Acceptable whole fruit is then rewashed by a school official or volunteers supervised by a school official and then stored segregated from other foods until distribution;

• Acceptable packaged non‐potentially hazardous foods are stored segregated from other foods until distribution.

Every school – same access

Who?What?Where?


Rollout Plan

• 4 school pilot• Training with foodservice staff• Training with nurse• Meeting with principal/nurse/foodservice

• Focus on procedures• What items in particular are going in the trash?


How Do I Use the Food?

• Send home with students• Use for students to take their medicine with • Use for students who are hungry between meals• Hand out to students before leaving school• NOT for Adult consumption!


Menus


** Items may be saved from week to week. Once quality decreases, please discard.


Increased Communications

• Work with students, teachers, administration and food service staff to help remind what a reimbursable lunch and breakfast are• Better meal planning• Don’t take milk if you don’t want to drink it• Training for staff – Reimbursable lunch in fall

• Reimbursable breakfast in spring


OVS Lunch Video


Procedure – Elementary/Middle School Lunch• Students go through line as normal• When students go to dump their tray, a food grade ware washing bin is placed before the trash can

• “No Thank You” Bin• Students can place unwanted items in the bin before dumping their tray

• FS staff inspect items, ensure safety, make sure on “list,” record items, take to nurse


Procedure – Lunch, HS

• Students go through line as normal• “No Thank You” bin placed in cafeteria • Ice sheet placed in bin• Used as sharing table, with leftover product being thrown away after each lunch period

• Whole fruits are washed and inspected and given to nurse


Results Lunch

• Hard to determine effectiveness as not many items can be rescued at lunch• Tortilla Chips (0)• Cheese Crackers (0)• Banana• Uncut oranges (MS/HS only) (275)• Whole Apples (504)

• Principals have mixed feelings for lunch


Procedure –Tradition Bkfst

• Looks very similar to lunch


Procedure ‐ BIC

• Students go through the line like normal• Take breakfast to classroom & eat• Each teacher has a “No Thank You Bag” to collect unwanted food

• Teacher places bag over the door handle of classroom

• School personnel collect bags & bring to cafeteria• Food is inspected, washed (if applicable), inventoried and delivered to nurse


Breakfast in the Classroom


Challenges & Concerns

• Promotion?• Explanation?• Heart‐felt students?• Saving items that don’t belong?


Student Announcements – Day 1

• Student 1: Hello everyone! My name is ___________.• Student 2: And my name is____________. We’ve got some important information to tell you about today.

• Student 1: We are so excited because our school is going to start doing something very special. We are going to be rescuing our food!

• Student 2: Rescuing our food? Why would we do that? Is it in any danger?

• Student 1: Yes, it is‐ it’s in danger of getting thrown away! Too much of the food we put into our plates goes into the garbage and gets taken to the landfill. It’s really a waste!

• Student 2: Our school is going to start rescuing some of the food that could still be good to eat rather than just throwing it away. Stay tuned for how you can help!



• Student 1: Hi everyone! Yesterday we learned that our school is going to start rescuing food from going to waste. If the food hasn’t been eaten or opened, we can put it on a “No Thank You Table” when we go to dump our trays. Then, we can save the food for someone else to eat another time!



• Student 1: Did you know that most of our trash at school is full of things that shouldn’t be in there? Like things that could be recycled or taken to the compost or even saved and used later! A lot of our waste is food. Now, if we haven’t eaten something that we put on our trays, we could save it on the “No Thank You Table” instead of throwing it away for other kids to eat later.



• Student 1: Good morning! This is _____________ with an announcement about school lunch. We know that at lunch, we have to take certain things on our trays while we go through the lunch line. Our school wants us to do that so we can eat all of it and have a good, healthy meal, but maybe sometimes we don’t want something or we aren’t all the way hungry. So, we are starting a “No Thank You Table” so we don’t have to throw some of that food away! Then, other kids that are hungry can get the food later.



• Hi! This is _________. We’ve been hearing a lot about food sharing and not wasting food at lunch. Remember, first we are supposed to eat all of the food on our lunch tray‐ we want to make ourselves healthy and strong. But if lunch is over and there is still something on your plate that can be saved, we will put it on the “No Thank You Table” for some other kid to eat later. Then we won’t be wasting so much food in the trash!

Dos and Don’ts of Food Rescue

• DO follow production records for meal planning.

• DON’T offer extra food items just so students have something to rescue.

• DO encourage students to select a variety of foods.

• DO encourage students to eat the menu items they have selected.

• DON’T pressure students to take extra food to put on the “No Thank You” table.

• DO inspect and sort all food items placed on the “No Thank You” table before giving to the nurse.

• DO wash and inspect all whole fruits after being on the “No Thank You” table before giving to the nurse.

• DO be proud of the work you are doing – feeding hungry kids & reducing waste!

Successes


Successes

• 24 Schools rescuing food• 2 high school• 3 middle schools


Results – SY 2014/2015


Results by School – Brubaker (2014/15)


Results –Aug 2015 – Jan 2016


Top Products Rescued

• Banana• Graham Crackers• Whole Apples• Cereal Bowls• Raisins


Milk – Edmunds Elementary

• Before:• Water available BUT . . .• 8 – 5 gallon buckets of milk dumped during lunch

After:3 – 5 gallon buckets of milk dumped during lunch


Brody Middle School ‐Apples

• Food Rescue Sheet reported large number of whole apples were being rescued each day• Breakfast & Lunch

• Compared rescued apples to number of planned apples each day• Weekly Total: 203 apples rescued• Meal Planned 1425 apples• 14% of apples were rescued in one week!


Brody Middle School ‐Apples


Take Away Messages

• Use Smarter Lunchroom to your advantage• Figure out what guidelines are most restrictive• Keep track of what students are throwing away


Thank you!


Contact Information

• Sandy Huisman• [email protected]• 515‐242‐7636

• Amanda Miller• [email protected]• 515‐242‐7636

Say “No Thank You” to Wasted Food - School Nutrition...•“No Thank You” bin placed in...

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