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The Food Services Department

Quality Policy
Central Kitchen
The Numbers

Central Kitchen

In April of 1982 Portland Public Schools opened a new central kitchen in the closed Reed School to be more cost-effective in producing meals for the schools. With the use of the most advanced food service equipment foods such as meats, soups, vegetables, breads, cakes, cookies, and salads are prepared and shipped daily to the Portland Public Schools.

The food service program is a totally centralized operation. There are many advantages to this type of organization, and they far outweigh any disadvantages.
  • Thousands of dollars are saved each year though central purchasing, since buying in large volumes, prices are decreased
  • Better control is maintained on the quality of food received
  • Ideal storage conditions allow for longer storage life of products
  • Frequent and dependable delivery service to schools is guaranteed
  • All schools receive the same quality of food
  • More effective staff utilization
  • Accounting and record keeping procedures are more consistentLess refrigeration and storage space is required in each school

Our central kitchen handles, prepares and daily delivers all the food and supplies to each school. The menus are planned monthly for all schools using a 4 week cycle.

The central kitchen is divided into four primary departments:

  • Receiving
  • Production
  • Distribution
  • Custodial

Careful consideration is made when purchasing food to stay within the food costs for lunch and breakfast.




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