Over 16 days in June, Bulloch County School Nutrition Services prepared and served 65,620 meals for children 18 years of age and younger, nearly 10,000 more meals than in June 2025.

"This did not happen by accident," Desiree Yaeger, director of School Nutrition for Bulloch County, said in a release from the school district. "It happened because our employees showed up early, worked hard, believed in our goals and served every family with kindness, heart and purpose."

Yaeger said she was proud of her team and other employees who volunteered.

"Every sandwich wrapped, every piece of fruit packed, every smile shared and every meal served made a difference this summer," she said. "And they made it look so easy."

Yaeger said the school system is committed to serving nutritious, well-balanced meals to students daily.

"It is a vital part of the school district's mission to prepare students for

success," she said. Through the United States Department of Agriculture's National School Lunch Program, the National School Breakfast Program and the Seamless Summer Program, the school district increases children's access to school meals.

"We like to say that we serve meals at school, not school meals," Yaeger said.

Bulloch County Schools lists these reasons why families should consider letting their children eat meals at school when the new school year begins Aug. 3:

• Free breakfast for all, free lunch for most — Breakfast is free for all students, and lunch is free for all students at 12 of 15 schools eligible for the USDA's Community Eligibility Program. Eating meals at school can ease your grocery budget.

• Mealviewer mobile app and digital menus — The Mealviewer mobile app and its digital menus are ADA accessible, translatable and allow families to view food ingredients and set up alerts to be notified when menus include known allergens.

• Farm to School Program — This program is adding more locally sourced produce and proteins grown by local farmers to school meals.

• Taste testing with students — School Nutrition Services staff hosts taste testing events with student focus groups to gather input from their customers.

• "Food Guide for Better School Purchasing" — School Nutrition Services uses the "Food Guide for Better School Purchasing" to ensure food products are purchased with only safe ingredients.

• Pursuing "Eat Real Certification" — Bulloch County School Nutrition Services is one of only three programs in Georgia selected to pursue an "Eat Real Certification." The two-year certification process for K–12 food service leaders consists of 10 evidence-based standards that measure 34 key performance indicators in a school district's menu plans and procurement practices to ensure menus are more delicious, nutritious and responsibly sourced.

• Member of the Healthy Kids Collaborative — School Nutrition Services director Desiree Yaeger is a member of the Healthy Kids Collaborative, an invitation-only program of the Culinary Institute of America that seeks to accelerate innovation and deepen technical and professional expertise in K–12 school food. Yaeger is one of only two school nutrition directors in Georgia who are members.

• One of the largest restaurants in Bulloch County — The school district employs 85 staff, who work to prepare and serve more than 1.8 million meals annually across 16 school cafeterias.

• Cafeterias inspected just like restaurants — The Department of Public Health regularly inspects each of our school kitchens at least twice annually, which consistently score 98 to 100.

• Offer versus serve method — Food service staff will encourage and offer students to try food items, but students may refuse any food they do not want. This method reduces food costs by decreasing waste.