The Cherokee County School District took the first step this week towards hiring an outside company to manage its multi-million dollar food service program.

The school district has issued a Request for Proposal (RFP) for contracted food services. Many Cherokee County school cafeteria workers packed Monday’s school budget hearing seeking answers on how they would be impacted by the district’s potential move to contracted food service.

Companies will have to submit a 100-page proposal with details on their plans for serving food in schools, complying with the state’s dietary guidelines and the type of benefits packages offered to cafeteria workers.

School board member Donnie Lee Smith has raised questions about whether the district should privatize its school lunch service. Smith is concerned about the job security of longtime cafeteria workers as well as the quality and serving size of food served by private food services.

“I want to make sure our children are given good meals in school,” Smith said. “I don’t think it’s a good idea to give up our control over food service.”

Chartwells School Dining Services served Cherokee County school board members a meal and made a presentation at Monday’s school board meeting. The company manages school food service programs in Spartanburg school districts 1, 2, 3, 5 and 7.

The school district projects it could save $750,000 this year by contracting food service. Interim superintendent Kim Bagwell said the district will review the proposals from the food service companies to determine what is the best fit in schools next year.

“Our goal is to feed the kids well and allow these workers to keep their jobs, pay and benefits,” Bagwell said. “The school district just doesn’t have the funds to do all that, and it might get worse before it gets better.”

The district’s school food service department has been running large deficits in recent years because of higher labor costs and a 10 percent increase in food costs since 2007. The school board transferred $750,000 from the budget to eliminate a $577,000 food service deficit at the end of the 2008-2009 fiscal year. This year’s losses are projected to top $900,000.

The school board approved an increase in school meal prices this week to help provide more revenue for the district’s food service program.

Elementary lunch prices will increase from $1.30 to $1.75. Middle school lunches will increase from $1.40 to $2. High school lunch prices increase from $1.40 to $2.25 this year.

Bagwell said the district hopes to have a company in place by Aug. 1.