School

Pain At The Pump Affecting School Lunch Programs

(KDKA) Every time gasoline prices shoot up, school districts across America feel the pain, especially when it comes to the food they serve thousands of students.

According to Maryann Lazzaro, the food service supervisor, in the Plum School District, fuel surcharges, along with the higher cost of food itself, is taking a toll.

"Basically everything, everything that has a transportation charge associated with what's coming to our door and the vehicle using gasoline could possibly have a fuel surcharge," added Lazzaro.

For seven years, Lazzaro held the line on school food prices, but not this coming year.

"Unfortunately, we are going to have to pass a lot of costs on to the eventual end user, the student," she said.

Next fall, Lazzaro says students will pay 10 percent more for food, although, at $2.05, lunch is still a bargain.

"I think people will still definitely buy the food cause we have such good quality food here," said Plum High School student, Mike Guida.

Lazarro said products like hamburgers, flour and tortillas are rising in cost.

"With the rising cost of flour, these products are going to be significantly more expensive next year," she said. "Cheese will be going up. All dairy will be going up because of the cost of the feed to the cows to make the milk for the eventual cheese product. Everything is just tied in the circle."

Also, it's not just the rising food prices that are creating such a financial problem for school districts, other things like plastic - the forks, the spoons, the knives at school districts - have gone up 10 percent this past year and are expected to go up another 10 percent.

The bottom line, it's a tough time to be in the food service business.

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