PBIC Operations & Equipment Guide: Menus & Marketing

Many Breakfast in the Classroom (BIC) schools have participation rates as high as 79% to 85%. Typically a breakfast menu cycle repeats every two weeks, which can lead to menu fatigue. Students like hot entrées and offering them daily or alternating hot/cold entrée days can increase participation. A variety of hot breakfast entrée foods are offered by manufacturers, and some come individually wrapped.

Offering scratch or speed-scratch breakfast entrées adds variety to the menu. Regional favorites—grits and scrambled eggs, kolaches, chicken-and-biscuits—are popular with students. Labor-intensive entrées can be managed by offering them just once during a menu cycle, and staging the preparation area over 2-3 days. Adding seasonal favorites and flavors with smoothies and parfaits can also spice up the menu. Changing menu cycles seasonally, or every other month, can also reduce fatigue!

Entrée Manufacturers Recipes/Menu Planning Marketing and Promotional Materials Menu Boards/Signage

Entrée Manufacturers

  • Conagra Food Service offers a variety of foods for changing tastes, including pizza, breakfast, snack items and more.
  • Dave’s Baking Co. offers a wide variety of high-quality bakery products, including muffins, breakfast bars, brownies and doughnuts.
  • De Wafelbakkers Company is a USA manufacturer of high-quality frozen pancakes that are individually wrapped with bright and colorful packaging and a meal contribution of 2 oz. grain.
  • E S Foods provides innovative, cost-effective solutions for breakfast, lunch and after school meals.
  • Foster Farms provides NAE- and soy-free, whole-muscle chicken and bone-in-parts, corn dogs, mini corn dogs, pancake wraps and a full-line of frozen Mexican products.
  • General Mills Convenience & Foodservice is on a mission to help grow your program participation, from student-favorite products and recipes to on-trend marketing resources.
  • Global Food Solutions/Right Start Foods Brand is your complete breakfast solution to help your students start their day right! Offering a variety of products in bulk or individually wrapped printed film.
  • Global Foods specializes in helping schools with breakfast, lunch, snack and dinner program entrées.
  • Integrated Food Service is a commodity processor of beef and cheese items. Home of the original grilled cheese, offering a full line of IW breakfast sandwiches. Smart snack-compliant items.
  • JA Foodservice Corp is doing the work to make feeding today’s youth effortless with our shelf-stable grab ’n’ go kits—breakfast, snack and lunch options available.
  • Jones Dairy Farm is a 130-year-old family-owned manufacturer of the highest quality all-natural, certified gluten-free breakfast sausage.
  • Land O’Lakes is a farmer-owned co-op delivering high-quality bulk and IW cheese products. Hot meals or cold for breakfast, lunch, supper or smart snack; Land O’Lakes has options that fit any service scenario.
  • Los Cabos is a manufacturer of high-quality, fresh-frozen Mexican entrees for breakfast, lunch, supper and smart snacks including burritos, enchiladas, quesadillas and tamales
  • McCain Foods will help you power up your menu with student-loved potato and sweet potato products. Tray line and Smart Snack-compliant options available for breakfast and lunch.
  • Post Consumer Brands offers a full line of a bowl pack, bulk and hot cereals for your school breakfast, Smart Snack and CACFP needs.
  • S.A. Piazza & Associates is where you will find Wild Mike’s K-12 products including our 16” pizzas, breakfast pizzas, wedge slices, 5” deep dish pizzas, our famous cheese bites and many more items.
  • Schwan's Food Service is an industry leader offering total solutions with great-tasting pizza, Asian and handheld foods are kids’ favorites.

Recipes/Menu Planning

  • Nutristudents K-12 helps you simplify operations, reduce food costs, and promote your school meals with our self-operated programs that offer 100+ weeks of chef-created, USDA-compliant menus, tools and resources.
  • Perdue Foods offers minimally processed nuggets, patties, bites and whole-muscle poultry, from chickens and turkeys raised without anti-biotics and are vegetarian fed.

Marketing and Promotional Materials

  • Acosta Foodservice has demonstrated unmatched strength in being operator-savvy and distributor-aligned making us a trusted partner in integrating new products and services into school foodservice.
  • American Egg Board connects America’s egg farmers with school nutrition professionals to encourage innovative ways to use real eggs in school nutrition programs.
  • Cool School Café is an industry-leading, points-based program in K-12 foodservice. Purchase qualifying products, submit verification and enhance your meal program with Cool School Cafe Points.
  • Descon Signage Solutions will help find solutions to improve marketing, branding and participation, and offer high-quality products for school foodservice.
  • Evergreen Packaging supplies school milk and juice cartons and promotes positive messages of sustainable packaging to students through its Carton 2 Garden program.
  • Genuine Alaska Pollock Producers will help you communicate the benefits of healthy, high-quality, once-frozen Wild Alaska Pollock. Visit us for recipes and serving ideas.
  • Green Edge Systems is the leader in school menu boards, including LED flashing menu boards, LED high-intensity printed menu boards, dry-erase menu boards and flashing digital menu boards.
  • Humane Society of the United States can help you add more plant-based options to your menu with their “Forward Food” program. Visit the website for everything you need, including recipes, toolkits, staff training, marketing materials, and more—free!
  • Institute of Child Nutrition (ICN) offers free research, training and resources to SN professionals.
  • inTEAM Associates, LLC offers software and consulting services designed to streamline K-12 menu planning and drive increased participation with preordering grab ‘n’ go meals.
  • Interflex can help simplify your procurement process by making your bid and purchasing data work for you.
  • Elkay Interior Systems (EIS) is an interior design and manufacturing company, offering an array of branding, design, build, and installation services for public and private schools nationwide.
  • KeyImpact Sales & Systems is a leader in the K-12 segment. Our team of professionals includes education sales specialists, chefs, bid and commodity specialists all engaged to support your needs.
  • Land O’Lakes is a farmer-owned co-op delivering high-quality bulk and IW cheese products. Hot meals or cold for breakfast, lunch, supper or smart snack; Land O’Lakes has options that fit any service scenario.
  • LoveYourLunchroom.com provides artistically appetizing signs for your lunchroom. Implement a makeover or simply order signs. Easy to buy and top quality. Imagine your space.
  • National Dairy Council (NDC) shares science-based benefits on how responsibly produced dairy foods help nourish children and adolescents. Shared via Fuel Up to Play 60.
  • Nutrislice is a leading provider of digital dining solutions for K-12, including digital menus, signage and online ordering.
  • Pacific Northwest Canned Pear Service is a commodity association representing the growers and processors of U.S.-grown Pacific Northwest Canned Pears, providing K-12 schools with recipes and promotional materials.
  • PepsiCo Foodservice is a premier global partner that leverages the best of PepsiCo to help our customers drive what is next with food and beverage experiences.
  • Premier Inc. is the proven and “first-choice” group purchasing program for K-12 operators, offering a comprehensive portfolio of contracted manufacturer agreements and cost-saving solutions.
  • Schwan's Food Service is an industry leader offering total solutions with great-tasting pizza, Asian and handheld foods are kids’ favorites.
  • SFSPac® offers a complete food safety and sanitation system, including product delivery, program documentation and staff education, for a simple fixed cost monthly fee.
  • The Peanut Institute and National Peanut Board work closely together to promote nutritious, delicious, sustainable and affordable superfood peanuts!
  • United Soybean Board
  • USA Dry Pea & Lentil Council/American Pulse Association
  • USA Pears – Pear Bureau Northwest
  • USDA Farm-to-School Program helps child nutrition program operators incorporate local foods in the National School Lunch and Breakfast Programs.
  • USDA Food & Nutrition Service/Team Nutrition supports child nutrition programs through training and technical assistance for schools.
  • USDA Foods Distribution Division/Foods in Schools supports school nutrition programs and American agricultural producers through purchases of 100% American-grown and produced foods.
  • Visualz (formerly Learning ZoneXpress) is a design company that creates nutrition and marketing resources to promote all child nutrition programs.

QUESTIONS?  Send us an email at SNF@schoolnutrition.org

Donate to SNF Now!

Related Articles

School Nutrition Foundation (SNF) logo
School Nutrition Foundation, SNA News

Meet the New Leadership: SNF President and Board Members Announced

August 25, 2025

The School Nutrition Foundation (SNF) is pleased to announce Gay Anderson, SNS, has been selected as the 2025-27 School Nutrition…

Read More
School Nutrition Foundation, SNA News

Honoring Dr. Becky Domokos-Bays’ SNF Leadership

August 15, 2025

The School Nutrition Foundation (SNF) honors the leadership of outgoing SNF President, Dr. Becky Domokos-Bays, RD, SNS. As Foundation Chair,…

Read More
School Nutrition Foundation, SNA News

Join SNF in Celebrating the 2025 Professional Development Scholarship Winners!

August 5, 2025

This year, 26 SNA members were awarded scholarships to pursue additional training, certifications, and educational opportunities that strengthen both their…

Read More