Piles Of Unexpired Packaged Food Found In School Dumpster
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DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) - Charles Barnes said he was stunned to see dumpsters piled high with food outside Dallas ISD's J N Ervin Elementary.
"Only in America, people!" he said in a video posted online.
"It blew my mind," he told CBS11 in an interview. "The more I looked at it, the more I got mad."
The district said it inspected food at the school for quality and safety. But it claimed some of the food tossed is old and some may have had contact with pests.
"We will not serve our students any damaged or compromised goods," read a statement from the district.
Barnes isn't buying the explanation though.
"There's no way. It's canned goods," he said.
In fact, he and others working at the school took some of the food for themselves.
CBS11 discovered unopened boxes and sealed, unexpired food in the dumpster.
NorthTexas Food Bank Vice President Jeanne Clark took a look at samples collected.
"My impression is that it's in good condition," she said.
She said, the food bank would probably toss out an unlabeled bag of pasta and an indented cup of marinara sauce, but the rest looked fine.
Workers at the food bank review food donations to make sure packages are still sealed and contents haven't passed their expiration dates. They warned, though, food now is often labelled with a "best by" date that signals when it has passed its peak, instead of a true expiration date.
"We don't want to turn away food that's perfectly safe and probably still tasty," she said.
Clark was confident enough in a pack of sunflower seeds and a bag of Craisins pulled from the dumpsters that she tried them herself.
"They're fine," she said.
For Barnes, it's evidence the food could have gone to better use.
"If you can feed someone, feed 'em. Don't waste it like that. That's a waste of food!" he said.
To donate to the North Texas Food Bank – www.ntfb.orgwww.ntfb.org
DISD's full statement:
The health and safety of Dallas ISD students is vital and the district follows detailed procedures to ensure food safety. In preparation for the opening of schools, the district is verifying that its food inventory meets quality standards. We will not serve our students any damaged or compromised goods.
The food in the store room and refrigerator at J.N. Ervin was inspected for both quality and safety standards. Food that did not meet those standards was disposed of using our established procedures for food disposal. Disposed items were documented appropriately.
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