Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

Chef Ann Foundation Awards Grants to Purchase Bulk Milk to 15 K–12 Districts

  • By Matt Jones
  • 09/10/24

The Chef Ann Foundation recently announced that it has awarded 29 grants to 15 school districts around the U.S. to go toward purchasing milk in bulk instead of single-serve containers. The Bulk Milk program is in its second year and provides recipients with the equipment, training, and materials required for schools to make the shift, according to a news release.

The USDA requires U.S. schools to provide milk with every breakfast or lunch served via the National School Breakfast and School Lunch programs, the news release reports. Single-serving milk containers have become one of the most significant contributors to food and packaging waste in schools, the news release reports. Bulk milk dispensers allow students to pour their own desired amount, cutting down on both the 45 million gallons of liquid milk discarded annually in schools, as well as their containers.

“We had more than 360,000 fewer cartons go into the landfill last year,” said Beth Brewster, Supervisor of Food Services at Caroline County School in Maryland. “There has been less [liquid milk] waste as well, since the students only take the amount they want and actually drink it.”

According to the news release, the grants were awarded to Petersburg School District, Alaska; Willows Unified School District, Calif.; Ocean View School District, Calif.; San Lorenzo Valley Unified School District, Calif.; Shady Creek Outdoor School, Calif.; Santa Clara Unified School District, Calif.; Weld County School District, Colo.; Colorado Charter School Institute, Colo.; Cannon Falls Independent School District, Minn.;  Minneapolis Public School District, Minn.; Explore Academy Charter School, N.M.; Ithaca School District, N.Y.; Groton Central School District, N.Y.; Franklin Special School District, Tenn.; Suffolk Public School District, Va.

Funding for the grant came with support from Elevance Health Foundation and the Posner Foundation, the news release reports.

About the Author

Matt Jones is senior editor of Spaces4Learning. He can be reached at [email protected].

Featured

  • University of Tennessee at Chattanooga Launches New Emergency Communications System

    The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga (UTC) recently deployed a new emergency notification and incident management system for its campus, according to a news release. The university partnered with 911Cellular to launch Safe@UTC, a smartphone app allowing university officials to communicate and respond during emergency situations.

  • Armstrong World Industries Acquires Parallel Architectural Products

    Armstrong World Industries, provider of interior and exterior architectural applications, recently announced that it has acquired the Colorado-based Parallel Architectural Products, according to a news release.

  • blurry image capturing students navigating crowded hallways between classes

    How Human Behavior Data Is Reshaping Campus Facilities Management

    The ebb and flow of students, faculty, and administrators across a campus have a larger impact on maintenance, cleaning, and sustainability than many realize.

  • Houston K–12 District Opens New Elementary School

    The Lamar Consolidated Independent School District (Lamar CISD) recently announced the completion of a new elementary school in a western suburb of Houston, Texas, according to a news release. Haygood Elementary School measures in at 110,000 square feet, has the capacity for 854 students, and is the first of three new schools scheduled to be built in the Cross Creek West community.