Tray Waste Part I: Determine the Impact of Lunchroom Changes by Measuring Tray Waste

Making healthy changes to the school lunchroom is a no-brainer, but how do you know if those changes are really making an impact?

Schools participating in USDA school meal programs are faced with regulations that dictate what foods kids can take as components of free and reduced meals. While these regulations require that the healthier foods be on the tray in order for the meal to be fully reimbursed, many students simply throw away unwanted components of the meal once they leave the lunch line. Thus the fruits and vegetables that kids toss are not providing them with any nutritional benefits; instead, they are adding to the cafeterias waste!

The Smarter Lunchrooms Movement has identified research proven methods that increase consumption of the healthy foods kids need. These strategies have been shown to increase consumption, decrease waste, improve the cafeteria’s bottom line, and improve student’s nutrition. Once one of these strategies or programs is implemented, it is important to assess the impact it is having. By measuring tray waste, you can to determine whether the change is beneficial to your business and have evidence to share with interested stakeholders, including school administrators and community members.

Collecting tray waste data doesn’t have to be a huge, expensive and daunting task! New research from Cornell University shows that a simple method, coined the Quarter-Waste Method, is a reliable, quick, and easy way to accurately measure food waste. While literally weighing each student’s food waste with a digital scale is the most accurate method, it is time consuming and costly to do so. A viable alternative is the Quarter-Waste Method which is nearly as precise (90% reliability) as weighing. The method involves a visual estimation of food remaining on a student’s plate or tray. When students bring their tray to the waste basket, the researcher or data collector simply records whether ¼, half, ¾, or all of each food they can identify has been eaten. These percentages can then be used to calculate weight of food being wasted.