Transporting hot food across a school campus comprised of 2,400 students presents a number of challenges, including maintaining food temperature while navigating through hallways and between students. Donna Tvedt, Food and Nutrition Director for Moorhead Area Public Schools in Moorhead, Minn., had to improvise when the two kitchens at Horizon Middle School were built farther away than originally planned.

“We transfer to two different kitchens at this Horizon school and it’s a long hallway,” said Tvedt.

Tvedt’s team was having trouble steering their current hot-holding carts through crowded hallways. “[My staff] can’t see over the carts to push it, and the kids are in the hallway,” said Tvedt.

When Tvedt consulted her Cambro rep, she learned about Cambro’s Pro Cart Ultra and Tow Hitch. Not only does the Pro Cart Ultra keep food hot for at least four hours, the Tow Hitch would allow her staff to use an electric cart puller to move the cart between kitchens.

“Any food that we need has to go from one kitchen to the other kitchen. It’s everything, from pizza to mashed potatoes to gravy, sauces…we prepare it at one kitchen and transfer it to another,” said Tvedt. “We transport the [Pro Cart Ultra] from kitchen to kitchen and then transfer to electric holding units. We do this only because of the need for multiple trips back and forth from kitchen to kitchen.”

The school’s foodservice staff frequently moves food between kitchens because one has an oven and the other only has a dish machine. With all of that time spent going back and forth, the Pro Cart Ultra with Tow Hitch has made a major difference for Tvedt’s staff.

“Number one is going down the hallway. We’re able to see around the [Pro Cart Ultra] because we’re pulling it. Any students in the hallway, we’re able to ask them to move out of the way because we’re in front of the cabinet instead of behind pushing,” said Tvedt.

In addition to transporting food between the kitchens, Tvedt’s staff found another great use for it: transporting clean food pans. At the end of the day, foodservice staff put the clean pans back in the Pro Cart Ultra and easily bring them back to the other kitchen ready to be used the next day.

Looking for foodservice solutions for your school? It’s not too late to get your operation prepared for the new school year! Contact your Cambro rep to get started today!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: ADRIANA DESIDERIO IS THE DIGITAL CONTENT MANAGER AT CAMBRO.