Buffalo Public Schools serves 30,000 district students PLUS thousands more in charter schools and the wider community.  In a city with the second-highest poverty rate in the nation, the Child Nutrition Services Department desperately needs a new central commissary kitchen in order to provide healthier, nutritious, unprocessed, and culturally diverse meals to ALL of our children. A new commissary will be able to provide large-quantity meals from scratch, get more meals and healthy foods to students, and support the well-being of our community. 

The current commissary is in major need of repairs and improvements; and the lease expires in 2025. Due to its small production and storage spaces; the food service department works almost exclusively with processed foods, which are lower in quality and nutritional value. 

In September 2022, the Board of Education passed a resolution to approve the a new Food Service Commissary; and it was planned to break ground as early as September 2023, with building completion targeted for 2025.  An agreement with the City of Buffalo would allow BPS to develop and purchase their own Commissary, which would have the potential to be operating with revenue within a few years of building completion. Significant time, energy, and resources have already been spent on planning work and consultation with a development company and architects.  Families have now have been informed that the project is on hold due to financial and administrative issues.  Without urgent action, BPS will be without an adequate food service facility for the foreseeable future. 

We need your support to build a new commissary to ensure the BPS Child Nutrition Program is able to:

-Move away from serving students highly processed foods that they often throw away instead of eating.

-Significantly reduce food waste by creating meals that appeal to students. 

-Increase participation in the breakfast program by expanding the menu beyond prepackaged items and cereal.

-Improve the Farm to School program to get students more access to fresh produce and support local farmers.

-Implement scratch cooking and culturally diverse menu items.

-Consolidate food production to save money, improve equity and access to quality school food, and improve overall efficiency. 

We urge you to take action to support the future of the BPS Child Nutrition Program and the well-being of our students!  This petition will be forwarded to Superintendent Tonja Williams and the Buffalo Board of Education to urge them to act NOW to ensure ALL of our children have access to nutritious and delicious meals. 

Sponsored by: Buffalo Parent-Teacher Organization, District Parent Coordinating Council, and Community Health Worker Parent and Student Association