Brownsville ISD, the largest school district in the Rio Grande Valley, has implemented a new initiative to bring forth a new age of refinement in school cuisine. The initiative, “Hecho Con Amor” or “Made With Love,” represents efforts to deliver students enriching and high-quality meals. Spearheaded by Brownsville ISD’s Food and Nutrition Services Department, the plan is to cook and prepare meals from scratch.
“Scratch cooking can be defined in various ways, but for us at Brownsville ISD, it means preparing meals from scratch using whole, fresh ingredients,” said Jackie Cruz, Director of Food and Nutrition Services. “We think of it as “Scratch Forward “. This approach focuses on more raw proteins, whole grains, fresh fruits and vegetables.”
This is a gradual transition, with logistical adjustments required to sustainably maintain the initiative. A critical aspect of the transition is preparing the staff with the proper culinary skills to make scratch-cooked meals.
“One challenge we face is insufficient culinary skills, often due to the reliance on heat-and-serve items. To address this, we are investing in staff training focusing on how to handle and prepare fresh produce, as well as ensuring safe handling of raw proteins to ensure students nutritious meals,” said Cruz.
Brownsville ISD is a significant food provider institution for the region, serving meals to tens of thousands of students daily. The “Hecho Con Amor” initiative was born out of a drive to strengthen the nutrition provided to these students because every meal served isn’t just food — it’s a commitment to their health, growth, and success.
“One in four children living in Texas live in food insecure households, meaning they do not know where their next meal is coming from. Many students in Brownsville rely on school meals as their primary source of nutrition, often eating three meals a day with us.”
“At Brownsville ISD FNS, our key focus remains that equitable access to good food is a basic human right so we are determined to create a positive change in the food system. With Brownsville ISD procuring over $17 million annually in food, serving over 55,000 meals per day and over 9 million meals annually, we are able to make systemic change.”
The district’s nutrition department first applied to the Chef Ann Foundation’s Get Schools Cooking program. Out of 45 districts that applied, Brownsville ISD was one of seven to receive the program’s grant, which supported the district in transitioning to scratch cooking and providing students with healthier meals.
“Processed foods are major contributors to saturated fat, sodium and added sugars in our diets. Cutting back on these items naturally boosts the nutritional quality of meals. Additionally, students who consume more fresh fruits and vegetables through scratch cooking are less likely to miss school, are more focused in the classroom and have a lower risk of developing diet-related illnesses later in life,” said Cruz.
Another aspect of the initiative is using locally sourced ingredients, contributing to the local economy, supporting suppliers, and establishing a connection between students and their community — laying the foundation for fresh roots and bright futures.
“We prioritize value-based procurement which focuses on local foods, a valued workforce, and environmental sustainability. For example, we have purchased watermelons from Bagley Produce in Edinburg and Citrus from Rancho Camino Escondido in Weslaco.”
Brownsville ISD will continue to innovate within the district to establish further scratch cooking and advance value-based procurement and sourcing strategies. Currently, the district operates a combination of scratch, heat-and-serve meals, and speed scratch.
“This does not happen overnight and takes more than several years to implement because it is more than just the food and menu — it involves finances, a skilled workforce, continuous training, and educating our community,” said Cruz.
