SAD 17 food service ‘losing $500 a day’

PARIS — For the first time in at least 15 years, SAD 17 may have to ask taxpayers for money to support the district’s food service program.

At an operations committee meeting held Monday, prior to the full school board session, SAD 17 food service director Martha O’Leary said her $1.2 million program is likely to end the year nearly $50,000 in the red.

O’Leary has money enough in reserves to cover that shortfall, but will probably enter the new fiscal year with less than $9,000 in her fund balance. 

Two years ago, that balance, used to cover equipment purchases and other unforeseen expenses, had nearly $75,000.  Increases in food prices, plus a succession of snow days last year — which cost the food service program $5,000 per event that “it can never earn back” — drained the fund down to $39,244.

Projections made by SAD 17 business manager Cathy Fanjoy predict the food service fund balance will be at $8,965 by June 30.

“Rising costs make it difficult if not impossible to finish the year with any remaining fund balance,” she wrote in a memo to committee members.

Driving the shortfall is a $20,000 increase in medical insurance costs.  Some of that is due to rate hikes.  However, O’Leary noted that some employees — covered at 100 percent — have begun to add family members to their polices.  SAD 17 covers 80 percent of premium costs for spouses and children of its employees.

Dental insurance costs also are up $3,500 this year.

Meanwhile, 10 to 15 percent jumps this year on the price of a la cart items at the high school have not been sufficient to cover the cost of the hot lunch program.

“We’re losing about $500 a day on that,” committee chairman Nick DiConzo reported to the full school board, after hearing O’Leary’s report.

Fanjoy points out that, with the addition of state and federal subsides on the free and reduced priced meals given to students from low-income families, SAD 17 actually loses the most money on its full-priced meals.

In August, the school board voted to to raise school lunch prices 25 cents.  Hot lunches in the district’s eight elementary schools now cost $1.75.  Middle school lunches are $2, while high school students pay $2.25.

The new prices remain 25 cents below the maximum price allowed by the state.

Food service at the high school also lost $1,000 per month following the refusal of a distributor earlier this year to supply 20 oz. bottles of flavored water.

Due to their size, those bottles contain more than the recommend amounts of sugars, O’Leary explained.  However, students have “simply refused” to buy the 12 oz. bottles stocked instead.

Rather than buy the smaller bottles, students have resorted to buying the larger bottles, which are still stocked in vending machines operated by the athletic department.  Those machines are on timers, so that they cannot be used during the school day.  However, students have learned to line up at those machines either before school starts, or after classes are over.

“If nothing else, we’ve learned our students are savvy shoppers,” joked Superintendent Dr. Mark Eastman.

O’Leary said the food service program has already put some of its vending machines on timers, so that the distributor will fill them with the larger bottles.

She said that to combat the expectation of additional increases in costs, hours will be cut at three schools next year for food service employees.  Schools on the target list were not identified.

O’Leary also hopes to cut 3 to 5 percent from food costs next year “through competitive bidding and other purchasing strategies.”

According to Fanjoy, long-term efforts to control food costs may include sharing administrative costs with neighboring districts, or possible even farming out the program entirely to a private supplier.

Although the SAD 17’s food service program has been self-supporting for more than 15 years, Eastman predicted that, this year, the regular school budget will have to include “around $25,000” to keep it running.

Still, while taxpayers may blanch at the new addition to the budget, longtime director Don Gouin, of Norway, wasn’t sweating it.

“Ron and I can remember a time before any of you were here when food service was in the hole $200,000,” he said, pointing his thumb to school board Chairman Ron Kugell.  “So, you’ll understand if we don’t appear to be getting too excited.”