Menus and About our Food

Seattle Public Schools (SPSSeattle Public Schools More) now implements the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) program at multiple schools within SPSSeattle Public Schools More.

See list of CEP schools and learn more about CEP

Families do not need to submit a free or reduced price meal application for students who are enrolled in a CEP school. If families have students enrolled in other Seattle schools, they will want to complete an application to determine eligibility for those students.

The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 authorized CEP to provide an alternative to household applications in the National School Lunch and Breakfast Programs. The intent of CEP is to improve students’ access to free school meals in eligible schools and to eliminate the burden for families who are required to complete income applications on an annual basis. CEP was piloted for a three-year period in a limited number of States and is available nationwide beginning July 1, 2014.

The Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program (FFVP) is a United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) funded program that provides free fresh fruits and vegetables to students in elementary schools where at least 50% of students are eligible for free or reduced-price meals. The purpose of the program is to increase the variety and frequency of fruits and vegetables that children eat and to positively influence their life-long eating habits. Seattle Public Schools Nutrition Services Department was awarded funds to serve a mid-morning or mid-afternoon fresh fruit or vegetable snack through the FFVP at 7 schools for the 2019-20 school year.

FFVP is offered at the following Elementary Sites:

• Bailey Gatzert Elementary
• Concord Elementary
• Dunlap Elementary
• Emerson Elementary
• Martin Luther King Jr. Elementary
• Van Asselt Elementary
• Wing Luke Elementary

The Seattle Public Schools Nutrition Services & Health Education departments collaborated on the development of materials for Washington Grown, a Harvest of the Month program. Washington Grown highlights local produce, whole grains and dairy on a monthly basis in 35 schools in the district. The materials created are transferable to districts throughout Washington since the program highlights foods grown in the state.

For Families

Support our local farmers by buying lunch on the Washington Grown, Harvest of the Month menu days. We regularly serve foods grown within Washington State on our menu. Harvest of the Month is just another way we are promoting the farmers in the state. Take a look at the current lunchroom menu to see the number of local foods served. The key on the menu highlights the foods sourced locally.

Here are some ways that you can share the Washington Grown, Harvest of the Month experience:

• Talk about upcoming Washington Grown, Harvest of the Month foods at home  – look up fun facts about each featured food
• Serve Washington Grown, Harvest of the Month items at home – watch for special promotions of these seasonal foods in local stores and get your children involved in shopping, selecting a recipe and preparing the foods at home.
• Buy lunch on Washington Grown, Harvest of the Month days . If your children are not regular lunch participants, buying lunch on the Washington Grown, Harvest of the Month day sends a message that you support our efforts to offer foods grown in Washington State to our student population.

Importance of Washington Grown – Harvest of the Month

Seattle Schools is committed to promote life-long health habits around eating by offering a variety of fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains and low-fat dairy products daily. Washington Grown supports local agriculture, seasonal eating and education about how foods are grown and produced.

Monthly Materials

One of the priorities of Washington Grown, our local harvest of the month program, is to link the cafeteria with the classroom. Learning about foods will stimulate an expanded palate for our children and change the way they think about food and how it grows.

Each month cafeterias are provided with materials focusing on the featured local food item. Materials are then displayed on their Harvest of the Month bulletin board located in the cafeteria. The nutrition educator packet provides key information about the featured item as well as resources to further explore each fruit, vegetable, grain or dairy item, it incorporates hands-on activities, tools and ideas for open-ended exploration by students. The packet promotes mathematics, science, health, reading and gardening, all centered around the highlighted food. It is meant for teachers, but is appropriate for anyone teaching nutrition education to our students.

• September  (stone fruits)
• October  (carrots)
• November  (squash)
• December  (beans & lentils)
• January  (apples)
• February  (dairy)
• March  (grains)
• April  (radishes)
• May  (asparagus)
• June  (fresh berries)

Washington Grown – Locally grown produce

SPS’s Culinary Services Department has a long standing history of working with its prime produce vendor, Duck Delivery of Washington, Inc. to source locally grown produce for its school breakfast, lunch and afterschool snack programs. Based in Sumner, Duck Delivery is owned by United Salad Co., a family-owned produce distributor founded in 1940.

In 2007 United Salad Co., Duck Delivery Produce, Inc and Duck Delivery of Washington, Inc. became the first Food Alliance Certified Distributors in the United States. This recognition followed a rigorous third-party audit covering a variety of industry and consumer concerns including conservation, safe and fair working conditions, recycling, quality control, food safety and traceability of sustainably-grown products.

Pride Packing Co., based in Wapato Washington, grows over 3,000 acres of apple and soft fruit orchards. This subsidiary of United Salad Co. is recognized in the industry for state of the art operations. Plums, pears and whole and cut apples are just a few of the local product grown by Pride Packing Co. and supplied by Duck Delivery of Washington, Inc. to the school district.

Through Seattle Public Schools’ relationship with Duck Delivery of Washington, Inc., produce is routinely sourced throughout the year from the following Washington and Oregon farms:

Farm: City

• Bolthouse Farms: Prosser, WA
• Carpinito Brothers: Kent, WA
• Dickey Farms: Bingen, WA
• Duckwall: Hood River, OR
• Evans Fruit: Yakima, WA
• Imperial Gardens: Wapato, WA
• Inaba Farms: Wapato, WA
• Pride Packing: Wapato, WA
• Rainier Fruit: Yakima, WA
• Ralph’s Greenhouse: Mt. Vernon, WA
• Siri and Son: Clackamas, OR
• Sterino Farms: Puyallup, WA
• Valley Pride Farms: Mt. Vernon, WA
• Washington Lettuce: Mt. Vernon, WA