About Us

Nutrition Services serves 11,000 school breakfasts, 21,000 school lunches and 1,700 suppers to Portland students daily and employs approximately 240 staff including registered dietitians, child nutrition program managers and school specialists, food service leads and assistants and central distribution personnel. In addition to the National School Breakfast, National School Lunch and the After School Supper Program, students at 18 schools receive fresh fruit and vegetable snacks daily in their classrooms as part of the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program.

School meals reflect the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans and MyPlate.gov by featuring whole grains, unlimited fresh fruits and vegetables, nonfat and 1% milk. Students serve themselves from a fruit and veggie bar that has two types of vegetables and two types of fruit and fresh salad greens. Students are encouraged to fill half their tray with fresh fruits and vegetables that are available with each school lunch purchased. The department purchases over 30% of products from local vendors for Farm to School programs such as Harvest of the Month and Local Flavors.

Promotions scheduled for the 2011-12 school year include:

National Farm to School Month - celebrated in October 2011
National School Lunch Week Oct 10th to 14th - Let's Grow Healthy
100% Grass Fed Beef Hamburgers from Carman Ranch and Kiyokawa apples - Oct11th.
FOODDAY featuring 100% Grass Fed Beef Hamburgers from Carman Ranch - Oct 24th
Civil War Promotion - Ducks and Beavers compete early in the cafeteria on Friday Nov 18th.
Draper Valley BBQ Chicken - served on February 7th.
Dr. Seuss's Birthday - Read Across America - Friday, March 2nd.
Draper Valley BBQ Chicken - served on April 10th.

Nutrition Services is committed to creating healthy school environments that support life long wellness for students by increasing healthy choices and limiting access to minimally nutritious snacks and beverages. Visit our Wellness web page to learn more.

Resource Conservation Efforts

Our resource conservation efforts are focused on transitioning from disposable trays to permanent ware. With the help of Green Teams, students and parent volunteers, 30 schools have switched to washing reusable lunch trays. The transition began in 2008 with a Metro grant to purchase 4,000 trays and will continue with budget support from the City of Portland to purchase additional trays. Due to aging facilities, not all schools have the necessary infrastructure to support permanent ware washing. Other earth friendly projects include serving locally grown and produced foods in school meals, partnering with school garden programs, and donating leftover food to Fork-It-Over on holiday breaks.