Wis. district launches food truck for high school students

The Madison Metropolitan School District in Madison, Wis., has partnered with a local organization to debut a food truck that will serve healthy, locally sourced lunch options for Madison high school students, according to The Capital Times.

The truck, which was donated by the Emmi Roth Cheese Co., will visit four high schools Tuesday through Friday, spending a day at each campus. Students who qualify for free or reduced-price lunch can use the food truck as they would the school cafeteria for no-cost or discounted meals.

Members of MMSD and partner organization REAP Food Group collaborated with students to create the menu, conducting taste tests and surveys earlier this year. One item that made the cut: a Cuban rice bowl made with garlic-lime chicken, sweet potatoes and black beans. All meals served meet federal school lunch requirements and are created with ingredients sourced from farmers across the state.

Though the truck only offers one item at a time for now, Steve Youngbauer, MMSD’s director of food and nutrition services, told The Capital Times that they plan to have both meat and vegetarian dishes in the coming weeks. He credits school districts in Minneapolis, Boulder, Colo., and Indianapolis as inspiration for the food truck program, dubbed Uproot by REAP.

“They [have] a vibrant program going in those districts,” he said. “It’s an opportunity for kids to have a fun, nutritious meal, educate them on the local concept and talk a little bit about where the food comes from.”

The truck will operate at the local high schools for the rest of the year, and then into the summer as part of the summer meal plan.

Read the full story via The Capital Times.