Ohio FSD urges families to stop packing lunches

Classes don’t start for weeks, but ideas for school lunches are percolating at full steam in Sylvania, where the district’s food service director is urging families to buy meals in the cafeteria instead of packing lunches.

Joe Shamy said he and his staff of about 60 serve balanced, healthy meals for less than the cost of food from the store. High-school and junior-high lunches are $3, grade schools charge $2.75, and breakfast is $1.75 at all schools.

“We want parents to support the schools, and another way to support the schools is to spend your money with us rather than like Meijer or one of those national chains,” Mr. Shamy said. “Because we are serving five components, and you can’t go out and buy and bring to school the lunch that we serve the children.”

The district recently began using MySchoolBucks.com, which allows parents to conveniently add money to students’ accounts for online lunch purchases. The site offers a smart-phone app that can fund an account.

To help spread the word about healthy eating choices, Mr. Shamy, who is also the district’s purchasing director, said he will don a chef’s uniform and visit the schools daily to promote nutritional education.

“It’s very exciting, teaching kids how to eat healthier and eat more balanced,” he said. “If you eat fruits and vegetables, you are not going to need two cheeseburgers. You’re going to be full at the end. I have young kids, so seeing that in my own house has kind of empowered me to say, ‘Let’s get out there and talk to kids.’ ”