SFE - Students are Filling Their Plates with Alternative Proteins in School Cafeterias

Monty Staggs, Chief Executive Officer, Southwest Foodservice Excellence

There is no question, kids are both the toughest and best critics. We at southwest foodservice excellence (SFE) find this especially true when it comes to school food. We are a culinary-based management company that feeds 700,000 K-12 students across the country. We are especially committed to finding innovative ways to offer alternative proteins to students.

Alternative proteins consist of foods that do not come from animals. Many recipes with alternative proteins are bean, vegetable, or seed based. Nutritional yeast is also often used as an additive to create alternative proteins. We at SFE not only believe that alternative proteins are good for kids’ overall health but also better for the environment. We also pay close attention to procurement processes in all our 160 school districts and their impact on carbon emissions.

SFE currently has 21 to 25 percent of our menu items as plant-based and is aiming to have 31 to 35 percent of our offerings to be plant-based by the end of 2024. 

In fact, we were recently recognized by the Humane Society with an ‘A’ rating for its dedication to protein sustainability.We are proud that our animal welfare goals are well within reach and on track to be achieved in their timeframe despite two years of significant supply chain disruption throughout the foodservice industry

This year, we launched our Local Chef Series, where we collaborated with talented celebrity chefs to serve up kid-friendly alternative protein-based recipes. We continue to innovate with restaurant-inspired cuisines for students by increasing vegetarian, vegan, and other plant-based choices. In fact, this school year, we just introduced a plant-based twist on the classic macaroni and cheese developed by acclaimed vegan Chef Sasha Raj.

Raj’s vegan mac and cheese recipe is inspired by her popular, beloved “mac and trees” recipe. This recipe consists of fresh, nutrient-rich vegetables to create an alternative protein to cheese. While cheese is often considered a good source of protein, it can be transformed using alternative ingredients. Raj is a master at creating comfort meals, making them entirely plant-based. She makes her “cheese” from a puree featuring butternut squash, potatoes, carrots, onions, cashews, nutritional yeast, and an assortment of flavorful spices.

Another popular dish is a vegetarian twist on Mexican tostadas created by celebrity Chef Cory Oppold of “Chopped” fame. 

Oppold’s vegetarian tostada is layered with black bean hummus as well as corn salsa and topped off with an avocado puree. We are currently working with multiple celebrity chefs to develop and research new potential menu items.

At SFE, we foster good habits and give kids as well as their families lessons and recipes they can take home. Our Roving Chef interactive cooking experiences allow kids to cook alongside a real chef. We also have Farmer’s markets where kids are introduced to new fruits and vegetables through display, education, and sampling.

“At SFE, we foster good habits and give kids as well as their families lessons and recipes they can take home. We are committed to cultivating better food choices such as alternative proteins and continuing to provide nutritional education for our students and families.”

Through regular taste testing panels, our students get to share their feedback on alternative protein dishes and shape their school menus. We are developing recipes in the kitchen that students’ tastebuds will love but also nourish the health of their minds and body so they can succeed in the classrooms. SFE is committed to cultivating both better food choices such as alternative proteins as well as continuing to provide nutritional education for our students and families.