Chenango’s own Chobani, a worldwide producer of Greek-style yogurt, will be available in school cafeterias across four different states starting this fall.
It was announced Friday that Chobani has been awarded a contract in association with a USDA pilot program that would make Chobani yogurt available to students in schools in New York, Idaho, Tennessee and Arizona. The announcement comes only weeks after the USDA revised nutritional guidelines to allow Greek yogurt as a viable source of protein in the National School Lunch Program - a move that subsequently promotes nutritious eating habits for students and boosts the job market in rural communities like Chenango County.
State legislatures have pushed for the inclusion of Greek yogurt in school lunch programs for more than a year, citing benefits they say will keep New York State a leader in one of the country’s fastest growing industries. New York was chosen as part of the program because of its thriving Greek yogurt manufacturing sector and New York State schools’ heightened interest in the program.
The pilot program will test the cost effectiveness of offering Greek yogurt in the school lunch program, which feeds 31 million students nationwide. The USDA has recognized that Greek yogurt packs twice the protein as regular yogurt, less sodium and fewer carbohydrates.
According to U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, who urged change in USDA School Lunch Program guidelines last year, the inclusion of Greek Yogurt is a “promising initiative.”
“Greek yogurt like Chobani is packed with healthy protein that our school children deserve access to in their school lunches,” she said. “And when we connect Chobani to lunchrooms across the state and across the country, we can give our children better access to healthy, nutritious food, while strengthening New York’s own dairy industry.”
“This is good news for our state’s growing Greek yogurt industry, as well as the hardworking Upstate dairy farmers who support it,” added Congressman Richard Hanna. “I will continue to pursue policies that promote this important key driver of our economy in Central New York.”
Said Chobani Chief Communications Officer Nicki Briggs, “We strongly believe that everyone, especially kids, should have access to simple, delicious, nourishing foods; so we are thrilled to bring our authentic, strained Greek Yogurt to K-12 schools as part of the USDA’s pilot program.”
The option to include Chobani is one being seriously considered in some Chenango County schools, including the Norwich City School District, where Food Service Director Randy White said the offering of Chobani is a great opportunity for students as well as the local area.
“I think the part that will be a little challenging right now is knowing how well kids will take it,” he added. Because Greek yogurt does not have a long shelf life, he said plans are to offer it to students little by little until there’s a clearer understanding of how well it will be received. “For now, we have the option to order it among other commodities that we get to pick and choose from.”
White said he is also awaiting changes in portion size requirements in the USDA School Lunch Program to accommodate for higher levels of protein found in Greek-style yogurt. Under USDA guidelines, it takes 8 oz. of yogurt to meet protein requirements, he said. “They (the USDA) have not established what the portion size of Greek Yogurt should be yet ... We are hoping for a change that would align with protein requirements.”
If the pilot program is successful in the trial states, Greek yogurt could become a permanent fixture on the Foods List for school meals nationwide.