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Beef in Schools: A Guide to K-12 Commodities

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Beef in Schools: A Guide to K-12 Commodities

The conversation surrounding school nutrition has undergone several evolutions throughout the years, with many parents and schools focusing more on the quality and source of food served to students. While numerous commodities make up a balanced school meal, meat and protein are often one of the more intricate options. By understanding the complexities of meat and protein commodities, schools, educators, administrators and parents can make decisions that promote healthy eating while creating a more sustainable food system.

School Lunch Requirements in Pennsylvania

In Pennsylvania, school lunch programs must follow federal and state guidelines to ensure students have access to nutritious meals to meet the dietary standards set by the National School Lunch Program (NSLP). For example, NSLP guidelines require schools to serve meals that include a variety of food groups, such as fruits, vegetables and dairy, while focusing on whole foods with a reduced sodium level.

What Is Commodity Protein in Schools?

To help school lunch programs meet school food supply guidelines such as those set by the NSLP, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) provides schools with access to surplus products like beef. Schools can order these items based on their specific needs and students’ preferences to create balanced, nutritious menus.

Meat Supply Guidelines for Schools

Meat and protein commodities must meet specific guidelines for schools to serve them. Some critical components of these federal and state regulations are:

  • Nutritional standards: Schools must meet standards set by the NSLP and the School Breakfast Program (SBP), which place limits on saturated fat and sodium content.
  • Quality and safety: All meat products must meet food safety standards set by the USDA and the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), which includes safety regulations such as proper handling, storage and cooking temperatures.
  • Documentation: Schools must have proper documentation of all food purchases for traceability and to meet all regulatory requirements.
  • Training and ongoing education: Staff involved in the food preparation process should undergo extensive training on safe meat handling services, the importance of meeting nutritional guidelines and ongoing education to continue promoting healthier meal choices for all students.

 

Why Meat and Protein Commodity Can Be Challenging

Ordering meat and protein commodities can present several challenges for schools, impacting their ability to provide nutritious meals. One major issue is normal fluctuations in the agricultural process, market prices and transportation logistics. Schools are also subject to strict regulations regarding food safety and nutritional standards, which can cause complications in the procurement process.

Another major challenge for schools is that beef and pork order processing requires more steps than net-off-invoice (NOI) or “brown box” direct commodity delivery, which are procurement methods to streamline how a school acquires food products.

Part of this difficulty is due to processing beef and pork commodities under the modified fee-for-service (MFFS) or Closed-coded NOI models. Regular NOI categories, such as chicken, cheese, or turkey, can be made into products for customers, such as daycare centers, restaurants, and nursing homes. If these businesses aren’t eligible for the commodity allowances, they do not receive an NOI discount. The main difference between regular NOI products versus MFFS or closed-coded NOI beef and pork products is a distributor can only sell the beef and pork products to the recipient agency that diverted the commodity pounds.

When to Start Planning Your School’s Food Supply

Ideally, you should begin planning the food supply for your school several months before the first day of classes. Starting the planning process earlier in the academic year provides enough time to assess your current inventory levels and analyze the performance of previous meal programs.

Starting early also ensures you have enough time to secure necessary commodities and that you comply with federal and state nutritional guidelines. One of the best ways to make the process of securing commodities for the school year is as stress-free as possible is to choose Feeser’s as your distributor for your K-12 food supply in Pennsylvania.

Make Getting Commodities for Your School Simple With Feeser’s

The Pennsylvania Meals Catalog is an essential tool for school nutrition professionals. At Feeser’s, we can help you navigate the complexities of food procurement so your students receive healthy meals. To choose us as your commodity distributor, you will begin by diverting beef and pork to PA Meals for the following school year. Then, assign the pounds to a processor and select Feeser’s as your distributor.

You must decide which processor(s) you want to use and divert beef and pork pounds to each processor. You want to divert enough pounds to meet your needs without overspending your commodity allocation. Overestimating pounds will result in getting more products than you can use and store or leaving commodity dollars unspent.

Review the items and quantities you plan to utilize at the start of the new academic year. If everything looks good, forward the amount to the broker/manufacturer representative. You will also want to use this time to confirm with the broker/manufacturer rep that your selections will be available for the upcoming school year.

The USDA allocations are final, and NOI/commodity banks will receive supplies at the start of the new academic year. The broker/manufacturer rep will verify that they loaded your pounds and that your diverted pounds will cover the assigned cases. At this point, the broker/manufacturer rep will send a summary of eligible cases to Feeser’s. We will post these cases to eligible recipient agencies so they can purchase these items.

Our Commodity Beef and Pork Items

Feeser’s carries commodity beef and pork items from the following manufacturers:

 

We’re here to help!  Schedule your commodities for delivery with your friendly Feeser’s representative 

It’s time to schedule the cases for delivery from Feeser’s! Now that your commodity beef and pork cases are assigned, verified, and posted, we can schedule your orders for delivery. It is strongly recommended that you schedule your deliveries at regularly scheduled intervals so you have these items on hand when you need them. For example, if you have 75 cases of Beef Patties, schedule deliveries for 25 cases in the first week of October, 25 cases in December and the last 25 cases in February.

Scheduling These Deliveries Will Also Show Drawdown and Help Protect Banks From Being Swept

Lead times for MFFS/Closed-coded NOI items can vary throughout the year. Shipping delays can extend the lead time further, so scheduling can help alleviate delays.

Have questions? Need help?  Please reach out to our Feeser’s K12 Team. 

Dan Spence is a School Specialist & K12 Account Coordinator at Feeser’s Food Distributors. He has worked as a Food Service Director, servicing multiple school districts across the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Dan has Chaired the State Food Service Committee for the Pennsylvania School Business Officials Association, served as legislative chairperson on the state board of the Pennsylvania School Food Service Association (SNAPa), and was also SNAPa Chapter President, Tri-County Chapter. He is a graduate of Indiana University of Pennsylvania with a Bachelor of Science in Food Service Management. Contact Dan at dspence@feesers.com or 717.564.4636 x1454

Let Us Help You Feed the Future

We are proud to provide delicious, nutritious meals for schools, daycare centers and youth community centers across the Mid-Atlantic. By choosing us as your distribution partner, you can feel confident that you will be serving healthy meals to help fuel our future. With our 120 years of food distribution experience, you can rely on our team to listen to your needs and develop a unique plan for your success.