Escalating food costs that have been hitting consumers in their wallets are starting to sock the city’s schoolkids in their bellies.
From such healthy staples as fresh spinach to more haute cuisine like cornmeal-encrusted fish and Cuban roast pork, dishes are getting 86’d from school menus as officials scramble to maintain the same quality with cheaper options.
“There will have to be some readjustments on the menu,” said Eric Goldstein, chief executive for the Department of Education’s School Support Services.
The cost of milk jumped 33 percent, and bread is up 11 percent since last year. Commodities such as eggs, rice and sugar also have grown significantly costlier.
School menu changes include substituting grape tomatoes with chopped tomatoes and increasing the frequency of cheaper items like mashed potatoes.
The changes have also decreased the availability of yogurt and replaced higher-priced meat items with ground beef.
“This is an art, not a science,” Goldstein said of the adjustments. “[But] we’re committed to the healthy meal.”
The school food budget is projected to increase 25 percent by the end of the fiscal year – up to $156 million from $125 million last year.
The tab for milk alone went up $3 million this year, Goldstein said.
The bulk of the school system’s 850,000 daily meals are funded by the federal government and a smaller allotment of state money.
Kids also pay up to $1.50 for lunch, with many students paying a reduced fee or nothing at all.
Unlike school boards in other cities, such as Seattle, which are considering upping the price paid by students, Department of Education officials said that option is not currently on the table.
They also said portion sizes – which are determined by the US Department of Agriculture – will not be reduced.
Students and parents said they’ve noticed a significant decline in the variety of items offered in school cafeterias.
“The only thing to eat usually is pizza, and I’m getting tired of that,” said Marc McDonald, a sophomore at Francis Lewis HS in Fresh Meadows, Queens.