Rene Jaquez, director of Student Welfare at the Ministry of Education says that the new school lunch, which the Ministry will be providing to 97 public schools where the extended day program is implemented, will have a different meal each day. The program will benefit 37,000 students and will cost RD$52 per serving.
The school day will run from 8am to 4pm and the menu will comply with requirements set out by the Department of Nutrition and School Health. Authorities at the Ministry of Education are currently in the final phase of negotiations with the potential suppliers.
The budget for school meals increased this year to RD$3.7 billion and next year it is projected to be RD$6 billion, an increase of 60.47%.
It is proposed that the menu will cover 75% of the schoolchildren’s daily nutritional requirements. Each day there will be something different. For example, on the menu on different days will be rice, stewed pigeon peas with fried chicken, carrot and beet salad, another day mashed plantains with stewed salt cod and a salad of tomatoes, peppers, onion and leek. Other options being considered are stewed tuna with vegetables, boiled yam and a grain salad, spaghetti with chicken breast, cabbage and beet salad, dumplings with stewed minced beef and a tomato and leek salad, salted herring with rice, stewed beans, and lettuce, tomato and cucumber salad.
www.listindiario.com/la-republica/2012/10/23/252162/Precio-del-almuerzo-escolar-sera-de-alrededor-de-RD52