For the schoolchild in Port au Prince, the new mother in Mogadishu, or the farmer in Ocotepeque, these losses have a real impact overcrowded classrooms, non existent health clinics, and inadequate water resources.

Aside from the focus on price and the need to absorb US farms excess output, school lunches reflect a broader trend toward turning food preparation into industrial production. Uniformity is prized above quality, and convenience is valued over freshness (and often over cost).