Rice contaminated with insects made its way onto students' lunch trays in West Allegheny School District, where officials said Tuesday they were unaware of government regulations to store the grain at cool temperatures.
District officials believe brown rice served to about 130 students in elementary schools on Monday was contaminated with weevils before its delivery in April. The state Department of Agriculture said there is no way to be sure but noted the district did not follow Department of Agriculture guidance to store rice at cooler than 50 degrees, preferably refrigerated.
The rice “was stored in dry storage and was not refrigerated,” district spokeswoman Karen Ruhl said, noting the district wasn't aware of the recommended temperature regulations. Cooking kills weevils, the district told parents in a letter disclosing the finding.
Weevil contamination is not uncommon with field grain products, said Steve Jacobs, an urban entomologist in the Penn State Department of Entomology.
Left long enough at room temperature, the eggs can hatch, said Donna Scharding, food safety program manager at the Allegheny County Health Department.
“It's not a health risk; it's just gross. It's a very undesirable thing to find bugs in your food,” Scharding said.
About 130 students at Donaldson, McKee and Wilson elementary schools were served the rice with the tiny, beetle-like insects before cafeteria workers pulled it from food lines.
This likely was an isolated incident, some parents of West Allegheny students said.
“Our cafeteria is incredibly clean, and everything is put away and cleaned up after they eat. You can't even smell food in the school after lunch,” said Kristi Gunderson, 37, a mother of two children at Donaldson and its Parent-Teacher Association president. Her children ate home-packed lunches Monday, but they do eat cafeteria food.
Donaldson should get attention instead for positive things, such as being named a National Blue Ribbon School by the Department of Education last year, said Dwayne Romano, 43, of North Fayette, a father of three students. His children ate school lunch Monday but did not eat rice.
West Allegheny ordered the rice through the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture. The district reported the supplier as Texas Star Co.
The Food and Drug Administration found several companies with that name, so government agencies were working to trace the supplier through the distributor, Imler's Poultry in Blair County, Scharding said. Imler could not be reached for comment.
A pest management company inspected the cafeteria at Donaldson, where all of the district's elementary school lunches are prepared, and found no further contamination, the district said. It said the health department found no safety violations in its inspection.
Tory N. Parrish is a Trib Total Media staff writer. Reach her at 412-380-5662.
