Healthy and Hunger-Free?

 
   Several weeks ago the New York Times published an article entitled "No Appetite for Good-for-You School Lunches, "given my line of work, the title itself made me cringe. The article went on to chronicle the dissatisfaction some high school students are finding with the changes made to school lunches in accordance with the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act . The act requires schools to increase the amount of fruits and vegetables in their offerings and rein in the amount of calories each portion contains to no more than 850 calories (previously, there was no restriction). Adding fuel to the fire, a price increase of 10 cents was implemented as part of a federal mandate to cover the cost of the lunches. Students are incensed at the increased prices, bad flavor and smaller potion sizes of the meals. Who can blame them?

To illustrate their frustration students from Wallace County High School in Sharon Springs Kansas produced this hilarious and poignant video:

The intentions of the policy are right on target however, the execution clearly does not resonate with hungry and opinionated teenagers. Striking the right balance between health, taste and engagement at a public school is tricky at best but fortunately, there are programs including our own "Food Politics and Systems" that are looking to do just that.

Programs like ours dissect all aspects of the food system in a tangible way so that students are empowered to make decisions about what they eat and buy. Our cooking and gardening classes strive to give students basic and practical skills that they can implement in their homes and communities.  To this day, we have never had a student turn down a dish made with fresh ingredients they have grown and prepared themselves.

These classes are a great privilege for the students who can participate but the question remains: how do we reach students who are not in our class or schools that don't offer programs like ours? One standout example is NYC's "Garden to Cafe" program, supported by the DOE,  the program facilitates the use of produce grown in the school garden to be served in the cafeteria. The connection  might seem obvious but there is usually a ton of red tape to sift through before anything can be introduced to a school cafeteria. This program is the best way to get students to experience the pinnacle of local and fresh. Sure, it's easy for students to toss out a browning piece of overcooked broccoli but most can't resist biting into a sweet cherry tomato grown just feet from their lunch table- it might even have them coming back for seconds.

With hopes to expand our program and take the Mobile Kitchen Classroom on a national tour we are looking forward to helping more schools find ways to engage students in all aspects of food literacy.

Growing carrots, broccoli, tomatoes and more! 

Enjoying the fruits of our labor during our "Mexican Feast". Homemade tortillas, fajitas, frijoles con arroz!