PERKING UP FOR CLASS

TAMPA - Coffee drinks move from bagel shops and kiosks
to school cafeterias.

Cappuccino in the school cafeteria, anyone?

First pizza and chicken nuggets pushed out meatloaf and peas. Now
those little half-pints of milk are being shoved aside by Gatorade,
bottled water ... and java coolers.

About two weeks ago, Hillsborough schools began rolling out their new
``sneak'' attack to get high school students to drink more milk:
cappuccino and coffee coolers.

Already the German chocolate and French vanilla coffee drinks are
available for lunch and breakfast at five high schools, said Mary Kate
Harrison, the director of student nutrition services for Hillsborough
Schools.

``They've been very well received,'' Harrison said. ``What the
students don't know is that they are a good source of calcium.''

Each 12-ounce cup of either a cappuccino or iced coffee cooler has
three quarters of a cup of milk in it, Harrison said, adding, ``It's a
sneaky way to give them milk.''

``We're also looking to increase our business, to increase our
revenue,'' she said.

Harrison heard about the coffee drinks at a trade show and is now
buying Barnie's Coffee and Tea Co. mixes and cups. Food service
personnel prepare the drinks, adding milk.

Standard Coffee Co. started selling the drink mixes to Florida school
districts about two years ago, said Mike Coleman, Standard's national
sales representative. So far, ``a couple dozen'' high schools,
including all in Seminole County and some in Orange and Volusia
counties, are selling his coffee drinks, Coleman said.

When the company offered free samples the first day of sales at Plant
High School in Tampa on Thursday, more than 1,000 of the 1,800
students tried it, said principal Vince Sussman.

``They're wired,'' he said after the giveaway.

``We used to get our little milk and our little school lunch and that
was it,'' Sussman said.

Allison Kirkwood, a 16-year-old junior, said it was a ``change of pace
for school ... It's a great idea. And it's good for Barnie's because
they can make money.''

Brandon High has been serving the coffee drinks for more than a week,
principal Rebecca Anderson said.

``The first couple of days kids just loved it,'' she said. ``I'm not
sure if they'll keep buying them at $1.25.''

Other high schools with the java drinks are Armwood, Bloomingdale and
Plant City, Harrison said, but they are only offered to high schools
because of the caffeine content.

The cappuccino or coffee coolers each have 40 milligrams of caffeine,
less than half that of a regular cup of coffee, she said. Carbonated
beverages usually have 55 to 60, she said.

For several years, Florida schools have not been allowed to sell
carbonated beverages until after school hours, but that rule will
disappear Oct. 9, Harrison said. Hillsborough has not yet decided to
change that practice.

Milk and fruit juices are still available in school cafeterias, but
bottled water and Gatorade have become big sellers, Harrison said.

About 51,000 bottles of regular and flavored bottled water and 28,000
bottles of Gatorade are sold each week, Harrison said.

Elementary students used to buy the larger bottles of water still
available to older students, but now they are only offered the
eight-ounce small bottles for 50 cents, Harrison said.

``They would buy the bigger bottles, but teachers got mad,'' she said.
``They said they always needed to go to the restroom.''