A fourth of St. Louis Public School students missed the first day of school (7,000 out of a projected enrollment of 28,000). Governor Matt Blunt and the man he put he put in charge of turning the district around, CEO Rick Sullivan, made that announcement at a press conference today.

Of the students that did show up a school today, four at Nance Elementary reported finding bone-like chips in the cheeseburgers they were eating at lunch today. As a precaution, the St. Louis Public School District removed the frozen food item from all of its elementary school cafeterias. The chips were sent to a lab for identification and analysis. The St. Louis Health Department was also contacted to further assist in the investigation.

According to district officials, the pre-packaged cheeseburgers were distributed from Preferred Meals Systems, Inc. The Chicago-based food service company agreed to investigate the product’s manufacturing process.

The following letter was sent home with students on Wednesday. No signs of illness were reported.

Dear Parents:

What appear to be white-enameled objects were found in some lunch meals at Nance Elementary School. The objects resemble bone chips and are being sent to a laboratory for identification and analysis. In the meantime, all meals with the same identification number and the same processing function will be pulled from the schools. An investigation of the entire manufacturing process will begin immediately. The St. Louis Health Department will be contacted to further assist in the investigation.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact me at (314) 867-0634.

Sincerely,
Monica T. Miller
Principal
Earl Nance Sr. Elementary

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