DESOTO COUNTY, MS -
(WMC-TV) - Dozens of Mississippi school districts need a new supplier for bread and rolls for their lunchrooms now that Hostess is shutting down.
Hostess is the supplier of bread for many schools across the state including DeSoto County. Many schools now have to find an alternative since Hostess is no longer able to service their contracts.
The Mississippi Department of Education says school lunch menus in six out of seven regions of the state will be affected by the bread company's closure.
Cynthia Coleman, Child Nutrition Director for DeSoto County Schools, says her district only uses Hostess for one product – fresh bread.
However, DeSoto County now plans to go with a frozen food vendor by the name of Merchants. The vendor is expected to ship whole grain loaf bread to schools district around December 5.
While many schools across the state of Mississippi have been forced to make drastic menu changes to accommodate for the lack of fresh bread deliveries, Coleman says that is not the case in DeSoto County.
"Hostess had done a good job letting us know this was in the works and about to happen, so I had gotten a call a week prior so I was able to rework my menu for the one menu item we buy from them, so it hasn't been a huge impact. If you were using them for multiple products I could less where it could be challenging," said Coleman.
Coleman says due to new USDA regulations, DeSoto County Schools switched to whole grain products two years ago.
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