FOODSERVICE OPERATOR OF THE MONTH
T he most famous of Aesop’s Fables, “The Tortoise and the Hare,” imparts a lesson that is often frustrating yet true: Slow and steady wins the race. It was certainly true for the foodservice team at Madison Metropolitan School District (MMSD) in Wisconsin, as they worked to transition away from pre- packaged meals to scratch-made. With a district of about 50 schools educating 25,000 students, a speedy all-at-once switch wouldn’t have been possible, or prudent.Instead the team is easing into the switch, beginning with a scratch-made meals pilot early last year at its Nuestro Mundo Community School. Since then, the district has expanded its scratch-made meals— all while training more chefs, streamlining operations and so- liciting lots of feedback from student diners. The process has involved much more than menu planning and upskilling, says MMSD’s Director of Food and Nutrition Josh Perkins. “Completely revamping the kind of cooking you’re doing for students is not a recipe change. It’s a culture change,” he adds. Perkins had scratch-made meals in mind when he took the role in 2022, but he said he took time first to understand the operation as it stood, especially at a time when COVID-relat-
Madison Metropolitan School District: taking a slow-and-steady approach when switching to scratch- made meals The nutrition team has taken a measured approach as it works to transition from heat and serve meals to scratch-made offerings.
BY JULIANNE PEPITONE
20
QUARTERLY | Q4
PHOTO COURTESY OF MADISON METROPOLITAN SCHOOL DISTRICT
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