Institutional
School Meal Catering in Medellín
Medellin Elite Catering cooks daily lunches and mid-morning snacks for private, bilingual and international schools in Medellín and the Aburrá Valley. A school contract runs on the same production kitchen and food-safety system we have run since 2019.
The service is built for preschools, kindergartens and full campuses from prekínder to grade 11 that want real cooking rather than reheated trays. Head teachers get a fixed delivery window and a monthly report, and parents get menus they can read in English or Spanish.
Feeding children every day is a different job from catering a party. Portions change with age, allergies are a matter of safety rather than taste, and a seven-year-old will notice if this Tuesday's rice tastes different from last Tuesday's.
- Itemized quotes available
- Bilingual English and Spanish coordinators
Plan your event
Our School Meal Service
We provide a hot lunch and one or two refrigerios (mid-morning or afternoon snacks) for every day of the school calendar. Schools decide which grades take part, and the same contract can cover students, teachers and support staff.
A typical day starts in our kitchen at 5:30 a.m., with lunch packed into insulated carriers by 10:30 and served in your comedor from 11:30. Preschool groups often eat earlier, so we can split the delivery into two waves.
Schools on Calendar A (February to November) and Calendar B (August to June) both fit the model, and service pauses automatically for vacations, Semana Santa and the October recess. When your school also needs food for a field day, a bazaar or graduation, our school event catering team plans it on the same account.
Service is invoiced monthly, either to the school or to each family, and the contract minimum is 30 meals per service day, with teachers' meals on the school's own account if you prefer. Each quote depends on the daily count, the grades served, the number of service days and the drive from our kitchen, and you can start one on the quote request page.
Nutrition Standards for Growing Kids
Our school menus follow age-based portion specs, cut back on added sugar and salt, and carry a registered nutritionist's sign-off before they reach parents. The reference points are Colombia's own: the energy and nutrient intake recommendations of Resolution 3803 of 2019 and the ICBF food-based dietary guidelines (GABA).
| Age group | Lunch energy | Cooked protein | Rice, potato or pasta | Vegetables and fruit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Preschool (3 to 5) | 400 to 450 kcal | 50 to 60 g | 80 to 100 g | 80 g plus a small fruit |
| Primary (6 to 10) | 550 to 650 kcal | 70 to 80 g | 120 to 140 g | 100 g plus a fruit |
| Secondary (11 to 17) | 700 to 850 kcal | 90 to 110 g | 150 to 180 g | 120 g plus a fruit |
Flavor comes from hogao, garlic, cumin, cilantro and slow cooking, so we use roughly half the salt of a standard restaurant recipe. Drinks are fresh fruit juices made with less than half the usual sugar or panela, and dessert appears twice a week rather than daily.
Fried food is limited to once a week. Snacks avoid packaged products carrying the black octagon warning seals of Resolution 810 of 2021, in line with the healthy school food environment that Ley 2120 of 2021 promotes.
Cycle Menus Parents Can See
Parents receive the whole month's menu before it starts, in English and Spanish, with allergens marked on each dish. We send it as a PDF the school can email home or post on its parent platform, and any same-day substitution is announced by 7:00 a.m.
| Day | Lunch | Snack |
|---|---|---|
| Monday | Sudado de pollo, white rice, ripe plantain, tomato and cucumber salad | Mango cubes with plain yogurt |
| Tuesday | Frijoles antioqueños, rice, lean ground beef, avocado slice | Arepa with quesito |
| Wednesday | Baked white fish with lemon, parsley potatoes, steamed broccoli | Pandebono and guava juice |
| Thursday | Spaghetti bolognese with hidden zucchini, green salad | Banana and a homemade oat cookie |
| Friday | Chicken sancocho with yuca and corn, rice on the side | Fruit salad with fresh cheese |
The cycle runs five weeks, so Monday's sudado returns on a different weekday next time around. Once a week we weigh what comes back on the plates, and at the end of each term the least-eaten dish is replaced with one that students and teachers suggest.
Allergy and Medical Diet Plans
Each student with an allergy or a medical diet has an individual plan on file, signed by a parent and backed by a doctor's note where possible. We record the allergen, its severity and the safe substitute, then cook that meal separately and pack it in its own sealed container.
Containers are color-coded so the serving team can check them at a glance: red lids for severe allergies such as egg, milk or fish, yellow for gluten-free and celiac meals, green for vegetarian and blue for other medical diets like diabetes or lactose intolerance. Every container carries the student's name, grade and the allergen it avoids.
School cycles contain no peanuts, tree nuts or shellfish at all. The controls from our allergy-friendly catering apply here too, including separate utensils, fresh gloves and a second check of each labeled tray before the carrier is closed.
Delivered or In-School Kitchen
Schools without a working kitchen take delivered meals, while schools with one can have our cooks run it on site. The right choice depends mostly on student numbers and the state of your kitchen.
| Delivered from our kitchen | Our team in your kitchen | |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | Up to about 400 students, no cooking space | 250 students or more, kitchen already built |
| Where food is cooked | Our production kitchen, with combi ovens and a blast chiller | Your kitchen, with our cooks and recipes |
| Transport | Refrigerated van and insulated Cambro carriers | None |
| Staff at school | 1 serving assistant per 60 to 80 students | Cook, kitchen assistants and dishwasher |
| Temperature control | Held above 60 °C, probed on arrival | Served straight from the stove |
| Equipment | Nothing needed from the school | School maintains large equipment, we bring small wares |
Delivered service reaches campuses across the valley, including the many private schools served by our catering in Envigado routes and those on the hillside loma roads covered by catering in El Poblado. Schools on the Las Palmas road or in Llanogrande are planned case by case, because the 1 to 2.5 hour drive changes how we hold and transport the food.
Questions and answers
School Meal FAQs
Do you cater public school feeding programs?
No, we do not operate Colombia's public school feeding program (PAE). That program is run by local and regional authorities, which award it through public procurement with separate eligibility, menu and reporting rules. Our school meal service is for private, bilingual and international schools that contract a caterer directly.
Can parents order meals directly?
Yes, at schools that allow it, parents can enroll and pay for meals directly through a monthly online order form. Families choose the days, add any allergy or medical diet details and pay by bank transfer or card link before the month starts. The school still approves the menu and the list of enrolled students.
Reserve your date
Bring Better Lunches to Your School
Share your student numbers, grades and school calendar through the quote form, and we will propose a menu cycle and an itemized quote within 24 hours. School administrators can also write to info@medellincatering.com.
- Itemized quotes available
- Menus, staff, tableware, setup and cleanup in one quote
- Food-handler certified team and labeled allergens on every tray
- Monday to Saturday
- 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
- Sunday
- Closed (events still run)