SCOTTSDALE — For the first time since 2017-18, the Scottsdale Unified School District is raising its school lunch and breakfast prices.
Patti Bilbrey, the district’s nutrition services director, explained the increase is due to labor and supply costs that have gone up over the past eight years.
“Labor has gone up 106% since 2017-18. It’s not just food, labor and supplies. Supplies have gone up 69%. … It used to be $25,000 to buy a walk-in [refrigerator]; now it’s $85,000,” she said.
Bilbrey said federal COVID-19 funding helped keep school lunch prices even, but that money is running out, leading the district’s governing board to approve the meal price change during a June 10 meeting.
How much are Scottsdale school lunch and breakfast prices changing?
The Scottsdale Unified School District serves about 20,000 students at 29 physical campuses and an online high school.
When classes resume in the fall, the following meal prices will be in effect (with previous price in parentheses):
- Elementary breakfast: $2.50 ($1.50)
- Elementary lunch: $3.95 ($2.85)
- Secondary breakfast: $2.50 ($1.75)
- Secondary lunch: Tiered, based on meal options, $3.95/$4.50/$4.95 ($3.10)
The new prices will bring in over $801,000 of additional revenue for the district. It will be used to cover the labor and supply increases as well as to change school lunch and breakfast services.
Other changes possible for Scottsdale meal service
Bilbrey said students have been asking the district to reduce its carbon footprint, and the new revenue could help fulfill that request.
“A biodegradable tray is four times the amount of a Styrofoam tray. So, with this price increase, we’re going to be able to start looking at those initiatives and bringing in some items,” she said.
The funding also could go toward healthier food options and larger portion sizes.
Bilbrey said the price increase will not impact students who qualify for free or reduced meal programs in any way.
Four Scottsdale schools — Hohokam Elementary, Yavapai Elementary, Tonalea Middle and Coronado High — will continue providing free lunch to all students under the federal Community Eligibility Provision.
Funding for this journalism is made possible by the Arizona Local News Foundation.
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