Hot lunch participation among the target elementary population is down in the Boulder Valley (CO) School District since the dining program was overhauled under “Renegade Lunch Lady” Ann Cooper, reports the Boulder Daily Camera. The drop in elementary participation offset increases among secondary students and led to a six percent overall revenue drop over the first quarter.
The district had hired Cooper, formerly nutrition director for Berkeley (CA) Schools, and her company, Lunch Lessons LLC, earlier this year to review the district's food options and suggest changes. Among those changes are the elimination of processed foods, new hot lunches prepared with natural ingredients and full salad bars. The goal is to move entirely to scratch cooking at all the district's schools eventually.