NORWICH – Chobani will be an option to include on every school lunch tray in the country starting this fall.
The U. S. Department of Agriculture announced this week that Chobani, the Chenango County born producer of Greek-style yogurt, will serve as the main provider of Greek yogurt for K-12 students in school lunch programs nationwide.
On Monday, Chobani spokesmen said the company will offer its product to schools at significantly reduced prices as part of its founding mission to provide better nutritious food for more people.
“When it comes to kids, for us it’s less about making money or moving market share,” said Chobani Chief Marketing Officer Peter McGuinness. “It’s more about making an investment in children and providing them with healthier options in school – better food for more children.”
Chobani’s push to be added to the list of items available for school lunch programs dates back three years. In 2012, The Greek yogurt boon spurred interest in substituting Greek yogurt for meat portions in school lunches, since Greek-style yogurt has a high protein count. At the time, however, Greek yogurt was not classified in a different category from regular yogurt which lacks the same levels of protein and has a high sugar content.
The USDA’s decision to reclassify Greek yogurt in 2013 set in motion a pilot program to exclusively offer Chobani yogurt in schools in four states: New York, Idaho, Arizona and Tennessee. The success of the pilot program prompted the USDA to make Greek yogurt a permanent offering to every state in the country earlier this year, leading a total of 10 states to sign up.
While Tennessee dropped out of the initial lineup, seven other states joined: California, Connecticut, Iowa, Missouri, North Carolina, Vermont, and Washington.
More states are expected to participate in the 2015-2016 school year – a possibility that could really boost the state’s dairy industry.
The National School Lunch Program feeds approximately 31 million kids nationwide on a monthly basis. Chobani was in competition for the USDA’s selection as the main provider of Greek yogurt with other yogurt making giants, including Fage, Upstate Niagara, Alpine, and Muller Quaker.
“Chobani is a nutrient-intense food and getting children the best nutrition early in life is very important to us,” said Dr. Robert Post, Chobani’s senior director for nutrition and regulatory affairs. “Our authentic strained Greek yogurt is made with only natural, non-GMO ingredients and provides an excellent source of protein and 40 percent less sugar than leading regular yogurt.”
Post also said Chobani refrains from using milk protein concentrates or animal-based thickeners. “Since the very beginning, Chobani has sourced milk from cows not treated with artificial growth hormones,” he said.