Welcome to the Food Service Department
The Taylor County School District Food Service program is dedicated to providing students with a high quality product and service which meets the nutritional guidelines of the National School Lunch Program while accommodating student preferences.
Changes in school lunch menus went into effect July 1, 2012 as a result of the Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010. The Act is federal legislation aimed at fighting childhood obesity and childhood hunger, and ensures school-provided meals are healthy, well-balanced, and provide students all the nutrition they need to succeed at school. The Act includes the following key changes which will modify school menus as follows:
- Schools are now required to offer minimum quantities of both fruits and vegetables every day to help ensure children increase their intake of these healthy food choices. New lunch menus will also emphasize variety with a weekly requirement for different types of vegetables: dark green, red/orange, beans, starchy, and all other vegetables.
- One requirement is all grains offered must be 100% whole-grain rich.
- Daily and weekly ranges (minimum and maximum amounts) of grains and meat/meat alternate foods.
- Restrictions on milk products sold in school cafeteria – only fat-free or 1% milk is permitted. Flavored milk must be fat-free.
- Schools must adhere to a calorie range, as well as restrictions on trans-fat, saturated fat, and sodium.
Our district is participating in the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) which means all students are provided breakfast and lunch at no cost to the students or their parents. However, middle school and high school students are able to purchase ala carte items at lunch which meet Smart Snack Standards.
Also, we expect food producers and processors will work diligently to develop new product offerings which are aligned with the new standards. Finally, if you would like additional information regarding the new healthy school menus, please visit http://www.schoolnutrition.org/or http://www.traytalk.org/, or you may call Benny Blue, Food Service Coordinator, at (850)838-2593.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination against its customers, employees, and applicants for employment on the bases of race, color, national origin, age, disability, sex, gender identity, religion, reprisal, and where applicable, political beliefs, marital status, familial or parental status, sexual orientation, or if all or part of an individual's income is derived from any public assistance program, or protected genetic information in employment or in any program or activity conducted or funded by the Department. (Not all prohibited bases will apply to all programs and/or employment activities.)
If you wish to file a Civil Rights program complaint of discrimination, complete the USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form, found online (http://www.ascr.usda.gov/complaint_filing_cust.html), or at any USDA office, or call 1-866-632-9992 to request the form. You may also write a letter containing all of the information requested in the form. Send your completed complaint form or letter to us by mail at U.S. Department of Agriculture, Director, Office of Adjudication, 1400 Independence Ave., SW, Washington, D.C. 20250-9410, by fax (202) 690-7442 or email at program.intake@usda.gov.
Individuals who are deaf, hard of hearing or have speech disabilities may contact USDA through the Federal Relay Service at 1-800-877-8339; or 1-800-845-6136 (in Spanish).
USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.
