NYC Council hears students’ testimony over gross meals served in school

New York City school kids testified to the City Council Wednesday about unpopular food options that have some students tossing their lunch in the trash.

The council raised concerns about the meals being served to students after images of less-than-appetizing dishes circulated on social media.

“I’ve been served stale waffles during breakfast and barely cooked chicken nuggets and fries,” one student testified.

“During the pandemic, students were served ham and cheese sandwiches and peanut butter sandwiches, which as a student who’s eaten them before, know that they’re not able to keep me energized throughout the school day.”

Other students testified that some food choices didn’t meet their religious or dietary restrictions — and those are only the meals the kids actually put down.

“Bottom line is we want all our children to have access to fresh nutritious healthy food that’s also appealing and tastes good, so they’ll actually eat it and not throw it in the trash,” said Rita Joseph, chair of the education committee.

Cafeteria staffing levels are just now rebounding to its pre-COVID-19 pandemic size, DOE officials said.

Christopher Tricarico, senior executive director at the Office of Food and Nutrition Services, said there’s room for improvement.

“My team, the department needs to do a little bit better job on the menu next year in September, and you will see that clearly pointed out in the menu so there is no confusion around the options,” he said.

One council member asked Tricarico what officials could do to make sure the kids actually eat what’s served to them. Tricario suggested principals might try putting the food down themselves.

“As a principal, I went down to the lunchroom and I ate with my students,” he said. “I think when we start to get more into that, and we have the school administration, parents and students together and having the same conversation, we do increase participation across the board.”

The hearing followed images and reports of menu options, including an anonymous student’s Instagram account that focused on the food in a Queens school.

The account, @bsgelunch, has been documenting the food served at the Baccalaureate School for Global Education, with a recent post showing “mushy” chicken tenders and a weak serving of French fries.

“School lunch sucked this year and I can only dream that it gets better next year,” the post said. “DOE if you’re reading this please bring garlic bread back.”