LIVINGSTON PARISH, La. (WAFB) – The Livingston Parish Public Schools System is hoping to get more kids excited about school meals through a new mobile food trailer.
The new Curbside Cafe trailer is expected to pay a visit to schools two to three times a week.
“We envision using the Curbside Cafe in so many different ways,” said Sommer Purvis, director of child nutrition programs for the Livingston Parish Public Schools System. “It will rotate between our 43 schools and we’ll also be able to use it if emergency feeding is needed and as part of our summer feeding program.”
According to officials, the new trailer will not have the capacity to cook the amount of food needed for lunch service. Instead, menu items will be prepared in school kitchens and assembled on-site in the cafe.
The hope is for the new trailer to also get students more excited about school meals. Right now, many schools in Livingston Parish offer professional development opportunities in coordination with a program called ProStart. It’s a restaurant industry-backed culinary arts and restaurant management program for high school students.
“We plan to have the ProStart students help develop menu items for the food truck,” said Purvis. “We are also working with the teachers to determine how we can incorporate the food grown on our campuses into menu offerings.”
Officials said that many schools in Livingston Parish already have classes that use hydroponics to grow crops. For example, the Denham Springs Junior High horticulture class recently grew lettuce that was served during lunch.
School principals will be able to request that the cafe visit their schools for special occasions. The new food trailer is expected to begin traveling to campuses by the spring of 2023.
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