Burrillville elementary schools reduce food waste, get healthier meals & support local farms through grant funding

BURRILLVILLE – School officials say the three public elementary schools in Burrillville have been making strides in the lunchrooms to reduce food waste and support local farmers.

The district was awarded a $72,195 Get the Foam Out grant through the Rhode Island Department of Education last year, funding Chartwells Director of Dining Services Pat Harrington says was used to purchase dish machines, tables, storage racks and reusable trays.

“What a difference it has made,” said Harrington.

The initiative began last year with grants totaling nearly $2.7 million, and Burrillville waas among some 26 districts to receive awards. Previously, Rhode Island schools used an estimated 11.5 million single-use Styrofoam meal trays each year.

With the recent conversion from styrofoam trays to reusable plastic trays at Steere Farm Elementary School, all Burrillville public schools are now compliant with the recently-enacted statewide Styrofoam ban that went into effect on January 1.

The three elementary schools have also been partnering with the RI School Recycling Project to implement new sorting stations for students to help reduce food waste going into the landfill. Students have been learning how to identify and sort for recycling, compost, and liquid waste, versus trash, and now have a shared table/refrigerator for unopened foods and drinks.

“Now with the help of trained ‘junior rangers,’ we are able to significantly cut down on waste being sent to the landfill,” Harrington said, noting that at Steere Farm Elementary alone, garbage disposal has gone from an average of six bags daily to just one.  

This past week, Steere Farm Elementary held a grand opening event that showcased the school’s kitchen refresh and the new reusable plastic trays. The event included a special cranberry relish food tasting, funded by a USDA Healthy Meals Incentive grant, which students and staff enjoyed. 

The effort to increase variety, test new recipes and bring fresher ingredients to Burrillville schools began last year with receipt of a $150,000 HMI grant, also used to purchase a rotisserie and other new equipment for cooking staff. The funding has allowed the district to hold a variety of tasting events in the school cafeterias and have given the Chartwells team the chance to work with locally sourced ingredients, helping to support local farms in the region.