58.5 percent of our students qualify for free or reduced-priced meals.
Each day, the San Diego Unified School District prepares and serves:
45,000 breakfasts
72,000 lunches
12,200 snacks
Food Services
The Food Services program believes that healthy bodies make healthy minds. The focus is on offering meals that are nutritious and well received by students. Food Services programs serve over 135,000 meals and snacks daily to schools; meals are vended to childcare centers, private schools, charter schools and other organizations located in San Diego.
Meals are served to students through the federally funded USDA National School Lunch and School Breakfast Programs. Food is also served at some schools and city parks during the summer through the Summer Food Service Program, in partnership with the City of San Diego Park and Recreation Department.
Staff pursues the program’s purpose of providing healthy meals and snacks amid continual increases in operating costs such as labor, fuel, and food, equipment replacement and other capital needs and new nutritional mandates. The program has dealt with these challenges by increasing meal participation and introducing innovative programs such as Breakfast in the Classroom and the summer food service program.
The program and individual staff members have been recognized multiple times in the media, and by professional organizations for outstanding programs and activities. Food Services is proud to be nationally recognized for the quality of its services while continuing to raise the standards of school food. Staff plans to continue increasing the profile of Food Services as an important partner in the education process.
Program Goals
To provide healthy meals daily to students preparing them to learn and guiding them in the process to develop positive life-long eating habits.
To meet USDA nutritional goals.
Continue to expand program access to student meals.
To remain a financially self-sufficient department.
To continue to look for partnerships and coalitions among public and private sectors to enhance programs and quality of food.
