This article is
directed towards school foodservice staff. Please share with the cafeteria
staff and managers at your local school.
Attention School
cafeteria staff! During your career in school foodservice, have you
ever:
A. Nudged
the fruit basket to the front of the counter so more students would
be tempted to grab a piece?
B. Put up eye-catching signage to promote a new healthful entree?
C. Greeted a student with "See you at breakfast tomorrow"?
D. Stocked the salad bar with fresh seasonal produce?
If you answered
"yes" to any of the above, you are promoting good nutrition
habits. Whether or not it's apparent, everyone who works in school foodservice
also wears the title of nutrition educator.
Nutrition is not
just another subject – it is a behavior. A well-planned curriculum
with excellent instruction and relevant homework assignments will be
ineffective if students lack access to a variety of healthful, appealing
foods. Nutrition in the classroom is only the beginning of teaching
nutrition to kids.
Just as the study
of chemistry involves laboratory hands-on experiments, the hands-on
component of nutrition starts in the school cafeteria. Use the following
guidelines as a yardstick to measure the effectiveness of your nutrition
"laboratory."
Put the Food
Guide Pyramid into Action
When students enter the cafeteria, what grabs their attention?
Do they see racks of chips, vending machines filled with sweetened beverages
or stations filled with branded fast foods?
Or, is the cafeteria
a place where kids can recognize the Food Guide Pyramid as more than
a poster on the wall? Is there emphasis on tasty fruits, veggies, grains,
healthful entree choices and low fat dairy products?
Merchandise
Healthful Food Choices
Make healthful foods beg to be eaten with clever marketing. The
use of baskets, attractive arrangements, colorful food choices and garnishes
will make nutritious foods stand out. Place nutrient-dense foods up
front and center where they will grab students' attention as they walk
into the cafeteria.
Limit availability
of non-milk "liquid calories"
It's a simple fact: As kids and teens drink more soft drinks, they
drink less bone-building milk. Kids consume more soft drinks now than
ever before with the average teen male downing 34 ounces daily. In addition,
there is an ever-growing array of sweetened fruit drinks consumed by
kids.
Not surprisingly,
recent research points to soft drink consumption as one factor contributing
to the increase in childhood obesity.
Offer a trio of good choices in your cafeteria, including a variety
of low- and non-fat milks, 100% fruit juices and bottled water.
Set and enforce
policies surrounding "Competitive Foods"
Nothing undermines a nutrition program faster than the competition
from minimally nutritious foods sold in student stores, vending machines
and at school fundraising events.
Lobby the school
community to take a stand regarding these sales. Offer to stock vending
machines with healthful choices and supply student stores with choices
from the school nutrition program. Discourage the availability of low
nutrient-dense food sold during breakfast and lunch periods.
Educate staff,
students and parents
Don't keep the good news about your program to yourself. Be proactive
about letting the school community and media know about the positive
nutrition choices you offer in your cafeteria.
Since your menu
hangs on thousands of refrigerators each month, make sure it "sings"
the message of good nutrition and health. Use graphics, nutrition tips
and facts about your program to spice up your menu.
Be a part of
your school's wellness environment
Don't hide in your kitchen! Play an active role in health fairs,
fitness activities, multicultural celebrations and wellness events.
Let school staff know that you are a valuable food and nutrition resource.
Invite students
on field trips to the school or central kitchen. To enhance the experience,
combine the tour with a brief lesson on nutrition, give the students
the opportunity to plan a menu, set up a taste test for a new product
or challenge students to find foods from each food group.
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Nutrition
in Schools: Ideas that Work
• Does
your school have a vegetable or herb garden? If so, become a partner
by using and highlighting the produce in the school cafeteria
program. Many schools in California incorporate gardens into all
aspects of the curriculum and school nutrition program.
In addition,
consider using local farmers as vendors for your nutrition program.
Integrate agricultural education into your work in school foodservice.
Visit http://schoolmeals.nal.usda.gov/Resource/farmtoschool.htm
for resources on incorporating a farm to school program in your
district.
• Kids
drink more milk when it is packaged in single-serve plastic pints
and sold in vending machines. For tips on establishing milk vending
in your school, visit http://schoolfs.wisdairy.com
and click on “milk vending.”
• A
Nutrition Advisory Council (NAC) is a win-win partnership for
both students and the foodservice program:
- Enlist
the advisory council's help in devising a marketing scheme.
Involve members in the development of a cafeteria slogan, logo,
mascot, or catchy name for the cafeteria.
- Give
the advisory council space on the menu for a "student's
corner" where they can provide tips about nutrition and
facts about the school meal program.
- Train
advisory council members as peer educators. Provide students
with nutrition training and simple lesson ideas.
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