More Input on Lunch Issue

There are usually two sides to every story and nothing exemplifies this more than the recent article regarding school lunch in the Pleasant Valley School District (“State Sends Students Back to the Sack--Lunch, That Is,” Feb. 17).

In order for the Pleasant Valley School District to claim reimbursable meals under the federal program, each meal must contain specific meal components. They are: 2 ounces protein, 1 ounce bread, 3/4 cup fruit and/or vegetable and eight ounces milk. The lunches provided by Ventura Unified School District to Pleasant Valley conform to this format. The lunches sold by other vendors or organizations do not conform and cannot be used for reimbursable meals, thus decreasing available income to the district.

It appeared from the article that Pleasant Valley district officials do not talk to their contractor, Ventura Unified, regarding the lunches. This is certainly not true. Food service personnel from both districts discuss the menu on an ongoing basis. Parent groups have had input; the most recent example being the conversion of tacos to taco salad, which resulted in a more acceptable entree. I recently proposed a student preference survey to Pleasant Valley officials, but have not received final approval yet from Pleasant Valley.

Less than one month ago I proposed a program that would provide a hot meal at least once a week. Ventura Unified contracts with Pizza Hut which is willing to deliver hot pizza directly to each school site. Ventura Unified will provide the remaining meal components and Pleasant Valley would have to provide the labor to serve and clean up. To date I have not had a response from Pleasant Valley.

Under the National School Lunch Program, organizations such as school clubs and PTAs may conduct four food sales per school year. While the regulation does help to prevent undue competition for a school food-service department, the primary goal is to restrict and regulate the availability of “non-nutritious” foods, i.e. junk food, sodas, chips, etc. Further, the regulation does allow “non-nutritious” foods to be sold, but only after the school lunch has been served. This information was missing from the article, thus providing a one-sided point of view.

It is unfortunate that the Pleasant Valley PTAs have lost a major source of funding. If hot versus cold lunches is really the issue, which I don’t believe it is, that can be solved by the purchase of appropriate mobile hot carts.

Food could then be prepared hot, transported hot, held at the site hot until serving, and then served hot. Additional staff for serving and an outlay of several thousand dollars for the proper equipment would be necessary, which may not be fiscally viable for the Pleasant Valley district.

GAYLA J. PIERCE

Director of Food Services

Ventura Unified School District