Recorded live from the NxtGen Masterclass in Orlando, this special fireside chat brings together two of the country's most passionate school nutrition directors and one of K-12's longest-tenured tomato experts. Host Marlon Gordon sits down with Jen from North Crawford School District in Wisconsin, Kristen Homer from West Ada in Idaho, and Jodi Batten from Red Gold Tomatoes to talk about what really happens when sponsors, operators, and students all show up at the same table -- and why clean labels, brand recognition, and good old-fashioned networking are quietly reshaping the future of school meal programs.

Small Districts, Mighty Programs

Jen runs nutrition for North Crawford School District in Soldiers Grove, Wisconsin -- a rural community of just under 500 students. She brought along a story that captures exactly why she does this work: a hallway lined with hand-carved wooden World War II airplanes, made by a craftsman in honor of a community veteran who survived a plane crash. It is the kind of detail that says everything about why small districts often run the most personal, community-rooted meal programs in the country.

Kristen Homer, by contrast, leads nutrition at West Ada, the largest school district in Idaho. Different scale, same mission. Both directors used the conversation to make one thing clear: school nutrition is not just lunch -- it is a daily promise to feed kids well, regardless of how many or how few are sitting at the table.

"We really care about feeding kids, and I wish that more parents and people could see the dedication to good food. It is healthy food, and we want to nourish those students so they can eat, learn, and grow."

Twenty Years of Building a K-12 Tomato Business

Jodi Batten has spent more than two decades at Red Gold building out the company's K-12 segment, and the conversation made it obvious how much the category has evolved. Red Gold's "Better Nutrition Made Simple" line now spans 22 items -- from crediting tomato products like marinara and salsa to condiments like ketchup and barbecue sauce -- and the company has spent years systematically pulling sodium out of those products. Some condiments have seen 70 to 80 percent of their sodium removed, and the entire barbecue line is now free of caramel color and, where possible, high fructose corn syrup.

Red Gold also reformulated its crediting tomato products with additional paste so operators only need to serve three ounces of marinara to credit a meal component, instead of the typical four. Small change on the spec sheet, big change on a lunch line feeding thousands of kids a day.

"The owners of the company are very conscientious about clean labels, and they were doing that way ahead of it. They always wanted to have the best tasting, most delicious, nutritious tomato products."

From the Field to the Can to the Cafeteria

One of the most underrated parts of the conversation was a quick masterclass on lycopene, the antioxidant that gives tomatoes their color and much of their nutritional power. Jodi explained that lycopene becomes more bioavailable when tomatoes are cooked and processed -- which means a shelf-stable tomato product can actually deliver more lycopene than a fresh tomato. Red Gold's tomatoes go from field to can in roughly six hours, locking in flavor and nutrition at peak ripeness.

That detail matters because school nutrition operators are constantly fighting the perception that canned or shelf-stable products are somehow inferior to fresh. The science says otherwise, and Jodi made the case that this is a story school districts should be telling families more confidently.

Branding Is Not Optional Anymore

Some of the most useful insight came when the conversation pivoted to branding. Marlon pushed Jodi and the two directors on a question that does not get asked enough: why should school districts care about their own brand? The answer was unanimous. Parents and high school students increasingly want to read labels, see ingredient lists, and recognize the products their kids are eating. Both districts mentioned that families actively look up menu software to check what is being served and where it comes from.

Kristen pointed out that recognizability builds trust -- if a kid has seen a brand at home or in a restaurant, they are more likely to choose it at school. Jen noted that her district leans on Red Gold's clean label specifically because parents ask. The takeaway for operators: a school nutrition program is a brand, whether it acts like one or not. Districts that invest in storytelling, social content, and visual identity are the ones winning trust with families.

"We have on our district website menu software so you can see all the products we use and read them. We hear from parents and high school students all the time that they want to look and read the label."

Speed Scratch, Plant-Based, and the Power of a Good Recipe

The Masterclass demoed three recipes built on Red Gold's new high-protein Bolognese-style pasta sauce -- taco-style, chili-style with beans, and a sloppy joe variation -- all using pre-made seasoning packets in Southwest, Creole, and Italian profiles for operators short on labor. Jen, who admitted she has never been a sloppy joe fan, walked away converted. She was also visibly excited about Red Gold's plant-based sauce, which she planned to add to her order guide as a way to stretch protein costs without sacrificing taste.

Kristen highlighted the value of grab-and-go formats like marinara dunker cups for breakfast and summer feeding -- a small operational tweak that meets students where they actually are. Both directors agreed that the real win at events like the Masterclass is leaving with a notebook full of practical menu ideas you can run on Monday morning.

Networking Is the Hidden Curriculum

Both directors said the biggest takeaway from the Masterclass was not a recipe or a product -- it was the people. Smaller-format events that mix operators across districts force conversations that would not happen otherwise. Kristen mentioned learning that another director makes homemade doughnuts at her school. Jen took home new ideas for marketing her program after a session on video editing. In an industry where burnout is real and budgets are tight, peer-to-peer networking is often the most valuable line item nobody puts on a P&L.

Key Takeaways