SALEM, N.H. — In the face of declining participation in the school lunch program, Superintendent Michael Delahanty is considering having the high school withdraw from the federal Food and Nutrition Service Program.
Delahanty said he will be presenting a more detailed recommendation to the School Board in the near future.
“The 2014-15 participation is down from 2013-14,” said Delahanty. “In just a month’s time, we can see a decrease in participation, and we’re certainly concerned that some of that is the difference in the food requirements and the restrictions that are placed on our food services program.”
The district’s food service program has lost $35,000 in the first month of school, according to the superintendent.
School districts and independent schools that choose to take part in the lunch program get cash subsidies and USDA foods from the U.S. Department of Agriculture for each meal they serve, according to the USDA website.
In return, schools must serve lunches that meet federal requirements and offer free or reduced price lunches to eligible children.
The federal guidelines put an emphasis on whole-grain foods and smaller portion sizes. According to Delahanty, many students are not big fans of the food that can be offered and are opting not to buy lunches.
“I want to be careful not to convey an impression that I want a diminished nutritional value of the foods we are serving,” said Delahanty. “But we provide the same type of portions to our biggest students as we do to our smallest students, and we are limited in the federal food guidelines on the types of portions we can provide.”
Those restrictions are having an impact on participation, especially at the high school, the superintendent said.
“We’re going to have to have some very serious discussions about if we’re even going to continue participating in