Paso schools offer free meals to all students this year 

Paso schools will offer free breakfast and lunch for every student in the 2024-25 school year to help ensure students are properly nourished and to alleviate pressure on parents to pack food each day.

Under California Universal Meals, all K through 12 schools are mandated to provide students with two free meals per day, regardless of their free or reduced meal eligibility.

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• Photo Courtesy Of PRJUSD
• NO MORE 'MYSTERY MEAT' The Paso Robles school district offers students two free meals per day featuring fresh, local foods.

Paso Robles Joint Unified School District (PRJUSD) Director of Food and Nutrition Services Jessie Wesch said it "levels the playing field for all students and all income levels, and that it allows for every student to start the day with a full belly and not worry about where their next meal is going to be."

The district has provided the healthiest options possible to its students since 2022, alongside other SLO County school districts, ditching the stereotypical vision of "mystery meat" school lunches.

"We're trying to make school food a lot better than how it used to be and how we all grew up with it," said Wesch, who oversees the recipes and food sourcing. "Then I'm trying to make as many products as I can, recipes from scratch, and using those local ingredients in some of our recipes."

Wesch said the district has provided the free meals to its students since the mandate in 2022 but didn't publicly announce the program until Aug. 14. Participation in the breakfast and lunch programs has increased each year, which has allowed the program to expand, she said.

Under the mandate, income does not affect each student's ability to receive two free meals a day. However, the district does require parents fill out an application that asks about income for district tracking.

Wesch said the application is not intended to be invasive but to help them better understand the community's needs for food and nutrition.

"It's just strictly data so that we can use it as a tool for better services for our students," she said.

Paso parents can enroll in the program using the district's ParentSquare app or by paper application available in schools.

The program is a win-win for everyone, Wesch said, because children are fed, and parents don't need to pack lunches or throw away uneaten food.

Wesch said her own children use the program.

"I send my student to school without lunch because I know that he's going to have a huge variety of fresh fruits and vegetables for lunch that I couldn't pack in a lunch bag and have the quality be up to par," she said.

The Paso district sources its food from Central Coast farms and suppliers.

"We try to source as locally as possible for all of our fruits and vegetables and meats and grain products," Wesch said. "We work very closely with Etto Pasta in Templeton, a lot of local farms on the Central Coast, and we have a couple of beef companies that we get local beef products from."

Once a year the district also hosts taste tests with students, trying new recipes from all over the world.

"We try different cuisines, and then the following year, I incorporate that into our menus," she said. "So it's exposing students to a variety of flavors that they normally wouldn't have at home and trying something new."

One of Wesch's favorite recipes so far is a fall salad with Swiss chard, kale, apples, and cranberries.

"I definitely grew up with the stigma of school lunch being gross and mystery meat," she said. "And so, I'm trying to change that perception because it actually could be really tasty and a great avenue for kids to get optimal nutrition to succeed." Δ