URBANA, IL (Chambana Today) – Researchers at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign have received a grant to tackle milk waste in childcare centers. The project aims to address the 40% of milk served in childcare settings that is wasted, creating financial, nutritional, and environmental concerns.
A team of Illinois Extension and research staff is developing the SmartServe toolkit to help childcare centers reduce waste. The toolkit will provide simple strategies for early childhood educators, such as allowing children to serve themselves milk rather than offering pre-portioned servings or packets.
Saima Hasnin, the principal investigator, explained that the team will also explore making milk optional at lunch, moving it to the afternoon snack instead of fruit juice, in settings that participate in the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP). The CACFP is a federal program that reimburses childcare centers for serving healthy meals and snacks.
“By reducing waste, we aim to save money, improve the nutrition of children, and make the CACFP program more effective,” said Hasnin, an Illinois Extension specialist and assistant professor in the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition.
The SmartServe toolkit will be distributed to interested childcare educators across Illinois. The project partners with several organizations, including the Illinois Public Health Institute, Seven Generations Ahead, and the Child Development Laboratory at the University of Illinois.
This initiative was funded by the Sustainable Agriculture Research & Education program under the U.S. Department of Agriculture.