We are excited to work with HCPS School Nutrition this month to implement a new sustainable initiative in the school dining commons – milk dispensers. USDA National School Lunch Program guidelines require that low-fat or non-fat milk be offered with each school lunch. Instead of being offered a traditional eight-ounce carton of milk, students will now use reusable cups to serve themselves when moving through the lunch line.Waste reduction is the major goal of the milk dispenser implementation. HCPS School Nutrition measured milk waste for one week in the dining commons this January and found that, on average, students took 220 cartons of milk at lunch each day. This amounts to nearly 39,000 cartons each school year ending up in the trash, as the cartons are not recyclable in our area. As far as liquid milk waste, students consumed about 70% of all milk cartons taken and wasted 30%, equating to approximately four gallons of milk waste each day. Other school districts across the country who have implemented milk dispensers report benefits of decreased container and packaging waste, as well as increased milk consumption related to students preferring the taste and chilled temperature of the milk from the dispensers. At Bluestone, students and staff are excited to begin using the new dispensers. We anticipate a reduction in waste from our dining commons, which is good for the environment, as well as improved milk consumption and school lunch participation, which is good for our students.