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What can a few extra pennies buy for school lunch?
Posted on Fri, April 23, 2010 by Gordon Jenkins
3 Comments | Categories: Food Justice, Policy, School Food, Take Action,
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The Child Nutrition Bill that’s currently moving through the U.S. Senate would add six cents to the amount that schools receive from the USDA for each school lunch. If you’re wondering if these few extra pennies would make any difference, here’s a helpful PDF you can download. The school food service company Revolution Foods put it together in order to illustrate the cost of healthy school food.
For example, an increase of ten cents can provide:
*1/4 cup of broccoli
*1/4 cup of freshly cut carrots
*1/4 cup of freshly cut celery
Not too much. Especially not in the midst of what Jamie Oliver is calling “America’s darkest moment in health,” i.e. the child obesity epidemic.
If you think we can do better than six cents, write a letter to your legislators urging them to fully fund school lunch when Congress passes the Child Nutrition Bill this year.
Member Comments
From FoodFitnessFreshAir on Fri, April 23, 2010
I definitely agree that it more would be better, but at least it’s something. The government should also encourage schools that have the space to grow a garden…maybe governmental incentives?
From Elizabeth on Mon, April 26, 2010
I am very happy knowing that my son’s elementary school is participating in a pilot program with a company that provides organic fruits and vegetables and healthy food. Lunch for an 8 year-old is $4.75 a day (up from $2.75 last year). That is fine for me because I’m fortunate enough to have a child that knows the value of good nutrition and will eat the fruits and vegetables provided. However, I have heard from the cafeteria workers that they have never seen so much wasted food and whole lunches thrown away. If you forget to order online for the following week, your child either gets a minimal snack (granola bar and piece of fruit) or you must bring it to the school. Although there are plenty of leftover lunches from children who are absent that day, those must also be thrown away and cannot be purchased even though a child may be hungry.
From Jim Crane on Wed, April 28, 2010
Call me skeptical but in many school districts where the food service has been contracted out to a food distribution company, many of the schools have done away with the kitchen equipment to actually cook food from scratch. What you saw on Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution is not unlike most school kitchens in America.
In our school district, it is a challenge to find a stove top to actually cook food. Corporate cafeteria food service has gone to 100% pre-cooked, processed, frozen and then warmed food choices.
A 6 cent increase per meal in the Child Nutrition Act will either buy more of the same processed “food” that they currently get or be absorbed in a quick cost accounting maneuver to help support the school districts overhead.
Don’t believe me? TAKE THE CHALLENGE - make a date with another Mom or Dad of another student in your child?s school and go have lunch with your children. I will be surprised if you come away from the experience ambivalent - more likely you will be outraged like the rest of us.
If you want a blueprint on how to change your child’s food at school, go to:
http://www.betterschoolfood.org/
And if you haven’t seen the documentary “Two Angry Moms”, get a copy and make some changes for you kids or grandchildren.
