Food & Beverage

School district food truck aims to feed inner city families

October 26, 2020

A "farm-to-school-to-you" food truck, developed by Cornell Cooperative Extension and the Buffalo Public School district, aims to feed the needy in West Buffalo neighborhoods.

The truck will visit city sites offering free meals to families in need, according to a Cornell Chronicle report.

"We want to provide an opportunity for families to help meet their budget needs," Bridget O'Brien-Wood, BPS food service director, told the Chronicle. "Seventy-six percent of our students qualify for a free meal, so we know families are facing big challenges right now. We are determined to get this farm-to-school food truck out on the road to offer our families a hot, nutritious lunch."

When students return to in-school instruction, the truck will rotate through 16 high schools and its various child nutrition programs. The hot lunches feature locally-grown ingredients.

"Food trucks have become an integral part of the nation's culinary fabric, and we are excited to be able to offer our students this amazing opportunity," Katie Schuta, principal at Buffalo School of Culinary Arts and Hospitality Management, told the news outlet. "We want to keep our students abreast of the current trends in the culinary industry and this combines two of the industry's hottest movements: food trucks and farm-to-table."