News and practical ideas for leaders in K-12, college & university, healthcare, B&I, senior living, sports & entertainment and contract management. Every item includes a short summary, why it matters for directors and a link to the original source.
Clemson University is seeking a contractor for residential and retail dining, convenience stores, meal exchange, catering, concessions and special events. The contract has an initial 10-year term with five one-year renewal options; bids are due Oct. 29, 2026.
MarginEdge's October report says operator food costs averaged 29% of sales in September, with potato and tomato prices rising sharply. It recommends checking prime cost daily and planning ahead for holiday catering demand.
Chartwells Higher Ed's Joe Labombarda says college students are embracing global flavors, protein and fiber-rich foods at breakfast.
Ricoh USA will support deployment and ongoing service of Hyphen's automated makeline through its RICOH Service Advantage program. Hyphen says the makeline produces more than 200 meals an hour from digital orders.
Swyft is now Mercury Automated Retail Solutions. It operates more than 100 automated stores in over 20 airports and is targeting healthcare and higher education next. The model bundles equipment, merchandising, replenishment and analytics.
A multiyear deal makes ColdSnap machines, which turn shelf-stable pods into ice cream, smoothies and protein shakes in about two minutes, available through 365's operator network for workplaces, hospitals and campuses. The machines need no freezer storage, plumbing or cleaning.
California has made its Farm to School grant program permanent, with $24.6 million in next year's budget and 16 regional navigators who help schools find local crops. The program reaches 49% of the state's public school students, and an evaluation flags kitchen capacity and staffing as limits on growth.
A McKnight's Senior Living column looks at where AI could reshape senior living dining operations, from forecasting and purchasing to personalizing resident menus.
Under a state law requiring at least half of school meals to be made from scratch, Albuquerque Public Schools reports per-meal food costs up 25% to 40%. The union representing cafeteria staff says mostly part-time workers are overwhelmed by scratch prep in short shifts.
At the FSM Summit (Oct. 4-6, Arizona), a panel of senior living, education and hospitality operators described investments that paid off in savings, production capacity and staff retention, and others that cost more than promised. One operator credited AI-driven inventory and procurement software with substantial food and labor savings, but only after several vendors overpromised.
The University of Kentucky ended its 12-year dining contract early and moved to a new provider, which put $55.5 million toward the buyout and may invest up to $95 million in new dining facilities. UK will repay the capital over the life of a roughly 30-year contract.
Ohio State Dining is working with its student health center to have Grubhub rovers deliver health products during cold and flu season. The idea came from pharmacy students in an entrepreneurship program.
Massachusetts schools can now order craisins made with local cranberries through the state's USDA Foods program, with delivery fees waived this year. Virginia school nutrition programs bought more than $24.2 million in local food in SY 2025-26, beating a goal set for 2026-27.
Ohio is bringing back its Ohio Grown Student Chef Showcase, in which teams of three to five middle and high school students create a school lunch recipe with at least one local ingredient. Massachusetts and Virginia are also promoting local food during National Farm to School Month.
Senior Housing News reports that operators are responding to higher fuel and supply costs with group purchasing, vendor renegotiation and tighter expense management.
The School District of Jefferson removed artificial dyes and additives such as Red 40, Yellow 5 and brominated vegetable oil from lunches for 2026-27 and brought back whole milk options. It served about 733 lunches and 318 breakfasts a day in September, and plans to cap added sugars and cut sodium further in 2027-28.
Provo City School District themed every lunch Oct. 12-16, from Tightrope Tacos to a scratch-made Magic Muffin Meal, and added photo booths and activities. Students who bring lunch from home were invited to take part.
At SHFM's National Conference in Chicago (Oct. 6-8), presenters built a pop-up concept with AI in about 20 minutes and shared how they prompt AI tools. One speaker's four-question test for picking a tool: what it must do, whether it can adapt, whether it protects your data, and whether you can check its output.
Healthcare Services Group announced it has acquired NEXDINE Hospitality, adding dining and hospitality capabilities across healthcare, senior living and other markets. The deal adds to consolidation among contract providers.
Avride and Sodexo Campus signed an agreement meant to move partner colleges from interest to robot delivery in weeks rather than months. Sodexo Campus serves about 425 U.S. institutions, and Avride already runs at Ohio State, Indiana, Arizona and Salisbury.
Toast's new AI team includes a Scheduling Agent that builds schedules from availability, forecast sales and overtime risk. Toast says beta users averaged 41% fewer overtime hours per employee; pricing starts at $60 a month plus $9 per employee per month.
Elior North America rebranded its healthcare division, splitting Cura Hospitality into two segments: Elior Healthcare and Elior Living.
Morrison Healthcare's After-Hours Program gives patients chef-designed meals, such as a Thai chili chicken and rice bowl, outside traditional meal service times.
A restaurant purchasing co-op built 20 AI agents that continuously monitor pricing, commodities, food safety incidents, distributor fill rates and freight. One flags any price change above 5%, and its findings are checked against the co-op's existing data platforms.
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