Healthy + Happy #12: The fascinating world of school food
At Life Time Foundation, we collaborate with school food leaders around the country to help them serve wholesome, minimally processed food to their students. As we gear up for back-to-school, here’s our quick run-down of the history, developments and importance of school food (a hot topic as of late).
On June 4, 1946, President Harry S. Truman signed the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) into law as a commitment to “the welfare of our farmers and the health of our children.” But that wasn’t the whole story — ulterior motives included 1) strengthening the military, 2) combatting communism and 3) assimilating immigrant children.
In the 1960s, the Black Panther Party started a free breakfast program (which inspired the modern-day School Breakfast Program). From 1969 to the early 1970s, the Panthers served breakfast to tens of thousands of poor, Black children, which allowed these kids to concentrate on school instead of hunger pains. Threatened by the Panthers, the FBI eventually shut down the program and the U.S. government created their own.
The complex role of the School Nutrition Professional should not be underestimated.
The role is expansive — operations, marketing, customer service, budget and finance, procurement and strategy (lots of strategy). Remember, the 2019-2020 school year, when schools shuttered due to the pandemic? These masterminds figured out how to serve food to 24.5 million kids a day.
They are powerful, progressive decision makers who directly impact learning outcomes and our children’s wellbeing. This quote says it best, “There has been a school food revolution for quite some time now. We have salad bars, we have chefs in schools, we're partnering with local farmers, we have school gardens, and we're not done yet.”
They play a big role in Inclusivity at school. Many schools offer culturally relevant foods and foods that are appropriate for religious, ethical and health reasons- making all students feel included and that their belief system is supported.
Efforts are made to include scratch based cooking to students to provide nutrition needed for student wellness and success.
In 2019, schools served 7 billion meals making school food an important tool for sustainability efforts. Schools are embracing school gardens, composting and recycling, plant-forward menus, plastic free lunch days and committing to local purchasing for the environment.
School meals provide educational opportunities. Students also gain social skills, build relationships and learn routines.
Other resources for understanding the world of school food: USDA, National Farm to School Network, Chef Ann Foundation, Whole Kids Foundation, Good Food Purchasing Program, Urban School Food Alliance, and Wellness in the Schools.
In the News
Healthy back-to-school habits.
For a successful school year, teachers need our help. Their top requests? 1) Engage our kids in learning, 2) create healthy habits at home, and 3) trust and advocate for teachers.
It’s no secret: breakfast boosts brain power, but kids aren’t always on board. If you need help, check out these tips. One idea to promote breakfast and avoid the stress of dinner amid competing evening activities? Make breakfast your family meal!
Another non-secret: we need sleep. Experts’ suggestion? Adjust your kids’ sleep schedule now (e.g., assign sleep time, create pre-bed routines, cut off screen time) to prep for the school year.
With fall sports on the horizon, pediatricians recommend easing kids back into sports to reduce the possibility of injury. Other tips? 1) Keep it fun, 2) watch the heat and 3) take injuries seriously.
Speaking of injuries, heavy backpacks can cause back strain. Here’s what you can do to help and what you should look for in a new backpack.
Events, Happenings and Opportunities
Healthy School Meals for All, a Colorado 2022 Ballot Initiative, will address child hunger by covering the cost of every meal served by participating Colorado public school districts while also creating grant programs to help schools buy food from local farmers and ranchers, increase frontline staff pay, create parent-student advisory groups on school meals in participating districts, and provide school nutrition departments with equipment and training to make healthier scratch meals with local produce. Click here to learn more about and support the ballot initiative.
Founded by former Noma head chef Dan Giusti, Brigaid is a startup that began challenging the school food status quo by putting professional chefs into public schools to cook fresh, wholesome food from scratch. They are hiring! Learn more here.
Have other national events or grant opportunities you'd like us to highlight? Let us know.
We hope you enjoyed Healthy + Happy. As always, please feel free to reach out to us with any questions or thoughts.