08/20/2024
In my experience, if cooking meals at home is your goal, nothing will define your success more than your ability to plan ahead. However some people find meal planning daunting. If you’re in the later camp, Amanda Morgan’s job might give you a minor panic attack.
Amanda is the nutrition manager for a local public school district, which means she is the person in charge of menu planning for all Pre K-12 kids for the entire year. She does have a computer program to help her, but she also has a lot of strict guidelines to follow and thousands of diverse customers to please.
In April, the U.S. Department of Agriculture made updates to the school food guidelines that will, among other things, further restrict the inclusion of added sugar and sodium. But the complexity of the rules is nothing new. Since at least 2010, the guidelines have included both calorie minimums and maximums, mandates around the inclusion of whole grains, a formula for ensuring that vegetable offerings are diverse, and many other considerations. The goal is to ensure that America’s busiest restaurants (a.k.a. public schools) are serving food that supports growing bodies.
For Amanda, feeding little people is a task that defines her home life as well as her workday. I chatted with her recently about how she plans meals for the whole school district in addition to her own kids (ages 2 and 5).
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Words by Chelsey Simpson
📸 by Charlie Neuenschwander