In early October, FoodSmith, the catering company that PCS has been contracting  with this year to provide healthy lunch meals, announced they were going out of business.

A statement on the FoodSmith website, which now redirects to owner Jamie Smith’s personal website, informed customers: “This coming week will be our last week of Meal Plan and a la carte delivery for now…we gave it a shot and so did you and we thank each and every one of you for your support. We had a good idea and we worked hard but it simply didn’t pan out.”

However, according to Principal Simon Fletcher, FoodSmith’s closure will not impact the new healthy lunch program at PCS. “FoodSmith will still be working with PCS, possibly under a different name. We expect the lunch service to continue as usual,” Mr. Fletcher said.

The FoodSmith lunch service was introduced to PCS this year to replace the old lunch program, which consisted of student-run clubs and groups selling food like bagels, chips, hamburgers, clam chowder, muffins, and pizza. FoodSmith, a catering company based in Santa Cruz, has been selling a variety of salads, burritos, and wraps at PCS since the beginning of the school year.

The FoodSmith lunch service has affected student run clubs financially. A statement from the Model U.N. states, “PCS MUN is fully appreciative of all of FoodSmith’s efforts to provide nutritious lunch options and encourages supporting these beneficial programs. And so, as we respect the PCS administrators decision to join the Heathy Schools Initiative. We’d like to keep in mind that being the club with the second largest student budget, have found it difficult to raise sufficient funds for our conferences and have had to cut over 70% of last year’s activities and conferences. As a result, we would welcome new ways to fundraise at school that are both lucrative and sustainable.”

“Our main goal was to provide fresh, healthy food for students at a reasonable price,” Mr. Fletcher said.

The change to the new PCS lunch program is a part of an overall push toward healthier meals in schools around the nation. The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010, championed by Michelle Obama, gives the USDA the authority to set new standards for school food.

“ FoodSmith was our top choice because they were able to deliver ready-made food; their ingredients are fresh, local, and organic; and they could provide delicious food at a reasonable price,” Fletcher said.  The FoodSmith program, which includes many fresh vegetables, satisfies the new requirements of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act, in contrast to food that was sold earlier.

Students, however, have varied opinions on the quality of the new food program. When  freshman Dylan Benson was asked about the new food program, he said: “The new food program is too expensive and doesn’t taste good”.  Senior Mali Bertschi- Berkowitz added, “I liked the diversity of food [in the past]. . .  there was always something to look forward too. Now you’re always getting the same thing.”

Junior Parker Dolton admitted he hasn’t tried the new food items but noted: “I think that it’s a good idea in theory to offer a healthier food option to students who don’t/can’t get food off campus. But I don’t think it is effective to only have their select menu. In order for them to stay in business, they have to introduce a wider variety of food that changes every couple of weeks.”

Mr. Fletcher asserted that the program has been successful overall. “Feedback from students has been mostly positive.,” he said.  ”There are some students who are not as thrilled with being provided lunch that contains vegetables, but we made a decision as a school that if we provide food, it will be healthy.  There are all sorts of ways for kids to acquire unhealthy things in their life. I don’t want PCS to be one of those sources.”