Trends in the School Market for Food

Excerpts from the report: The Nation's schools provide an important and rapidly expanding market for food. During the school year 1962-63, foods with a wholesale value of $929 million moved through lunchrooms in about 66,000 public elementary and secondary schools. Additional foods valued at $77 million were used in approximately 6,500 private schools offering food services. The school outlet, therefore, accounts for about $1 billion in foods. Five years earlier, public school lunchrooms were providing an outlet for foods valued at $597 million; thus there has been a gain, of $332 million or 56 percent over levels in 1957-58. Wholesale food prices rose about 6 percent during this 5-year period; hence, the increase was largely in the volume of food moving through this market