Mark your calendar "TAKE OFF with School Breakfast" for March 7-11th, 2022!
SNA’s theme “reminds parents and stakeholders that a healthy school breakfast helps ensure students’ academic success in school so they can ‘take off’ and reach their goals.”
If you would like more information, check out the NSBW website here: School Nutrition Association
You can find images to use for marketing or posting in the cafeteria, a toolkit (available soon!) as well as NSBW merchandise available for sale.
Procurement decisions for next school year should be in the beginning process right now. Your USDA Foods survey will be sent out shortly which will set in motion your menus for the coming school year. Next year, like this year will probably see supply chain disruption continue. One food item that you may want to consider buying locally to mitigate some of the supply chain issues is beef.
Commodity ground beef has been a staple in the school meals program for so long that many have never considered trying to buy it locally. However, the price of commodity ground beef has increased just like in every other market. Locally sourced ground beef may be able to compete in price, packaging and delivery for use in school menus.
We have developed a resource based on the Department of Agriculture’s list of meat processors to help schools develop a relationship with a local supplier. This list is only of those processors that use locally grown cattle and meet the meat inspection requirement of federal meal programs. You may have other processors in your area that may or may not be using locally sourced beef but do meet the inspection requirements.
Click HERE for a printable PDF file of processors, location, and contact information.
Before contacting the processor, think about how much ground beef you will need for each month of school. You likely know how many pounds you need each time you serve ground beef on your menu i.e., 15 pounds every time tacos are served. Now multiple that quantity by how many times you serve a meal using ground beef in the month – don’t forget chili, tater-tot casserole, sloppy joes, shepherd’s pie, and hamburger gravy. What are the other student favorites featuring ground beef?
The processor may be willing to grind weekly to meet your needs but more than likely, they will only want to accommodate a monthly delivery. Will you have enough storage for a monthly delivery?
Delivery will also need to be negotiated. Is there a way that the school can pick up the meat or will you count on the processor to do that?
Remember to ask about packaging; can the processor do bulk in the size that is most efficient for your kitchen? The processor may have other options for you to consider such as beef patties if you have a way to grill raw patties.
If you do decide to use local beef in your school meal program, remember to note that on any Farm to School survey that comes out. This would also be a positive highlight of community support for your program in a report to the school board.
Please contact NDDPI Child Nutrition and Food Distribution office at 701-328-2294 or dpicnfd@nd.gov if you need more information on procuring local beef or want to talk about the procurement process for this coming year.
Many children suffer from a summer vacation “nutrition gap.” Does your school district provide meals to children in your community during the summer? Local schools are the best sites for summer feeding efforts. Children and parents are familiar with local schools and schools are known for providing nutritious food in a safe environment. Summer meals may look a bit different than last year. Due to COVID 19, USDA implemented many waivers to assist schools in operating summer feeding programs in 2020 and 2021. At this time, we do not anticipate any nationwide USDA waivers available for this program. This means that grab-and-go meals will not be an option and eligibility will need to be determined prior to program operations unless USDA offers program waivers. To determine if your school will be eligible to offer SFSP this summer, watch for an email, in February, with site eligibility information. For more information contact, Melissa Anderson mdanderson@nd.gov or call 701-328-2263.
Some health inspection reports have recently noted schools using raw eggs in meal production. We usually see health inspector comments citing the school for improper storage of eggs in the cooler, but these last reports used raw eggs in scrambled egg recipes for school meals.
We don’t see shelled eggs a lot in a school kitchen since it is a lot of work to crack enough eggs to prepare a meal for all those hungry mouths. It is also too easy to miss a shell fragment when breaking so many. With the supply chain disruption and a push to source food locally, we may see more fresh eggs in our kitchens.
ND Food Code
The North Dakota Food Code states that “Pasteurized eggs or egg products shall be substituted for raw eggs in the preparation of foods such as Caesar salad, hollandaise or Béarnaise sauce, mayonnaise, meringue, eggnog, ice cream, egg-fortified beverages and recipes in which more than one egg is broken, and the eggs are combined.”[3]
Using Eggs
In a confirmation email, Michael Lee, ND DOH Health Inspector and Food Safety trainer, said that “Raw shell eggs are allowed for baking or cooking (1 egg) for individual service”. Most of the recipes noted in the Food Code list use eggs in an uncooked product. Since eggs can carry salmonella, one of those Big Six bacteria we talk about in Food Safety class, pasteurization will ensure that the egg is already ‘cooked’ for those recipes.
The Food Code also refers to multi-egg dishes such as scrambled eggs, egg bakes, and frittatas must use pasteurized eggs. The most common pasteurized eggs are available in pint, quart, and half-gallon boxes. Many people say that these liquid eggs have a bland taste. Adding some extra seasoning, such as sage and thyme, will help bump up the flavor.
Egg Storage
Using shelled eggs also runs the risk of cross-contamination from an accidentally broken shell. This is why shelled eggs need to be stored below ready-to-eat food and any other food item with a cooking temperature lower than eggs.
The poster set that you received this fall has a nice chart to post by the refrigerator that identifies where foods should be stored based on their final cooking temperature. This chart does not show shelled eggs, though. If your school does bring in raw eggs possibly to use in baking, it would be a good idea to write ‘EGGS’ in the green-colored ‘145° F’ rectangle to remind everyone where eggs should be in your cooler.
A new feature is now available on the Food Buying Guide (FBG) for Child Nutrition Programs Interactive Web-based Tool. Users can now view the meal pattern requirements per meal component for a selected Program and age/grade group while using the FBG calculator. This feature allows for easy access to helpful meal pattern guidance to assist in creating shopping lists.
If you are serving multiple age groups and want to cook the right amount – this will provide you with a calculated answer!
For example, you have Ground Beef, from your USDA Foods delivery. Sloppy Joes is on your lunch menu later this week. You have planned that your high school students (50) will receive a 2 oz sandwich and your elementary students (100) will receive a 1 oz sandwich. The FBG calculates that you will need to purchase 17 lbs of ground beef.
  As you can see, these pictures may be difficult to see or interpret, however if you are interested in using the Food Buying Guide and would like some assistance getting started, reach out to our office at dpicnfd@nd.gov and we can help you get going!
Explore the Food Buying Guide today!
Kitchen Counter Conversations Resume
Join us for this months KCC on Tuesday, January 18th, at 2 PM CST
Topic: Non-Program Foods
We will explore and discuss those foods offered in your program that are not a part of your traditional “Reimbursable Meal.”
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