Today’s menu: pasta with meat sauce, breadstick, green beans, orange, milk (not pictured)
I really savored the pleasure of a hot meal today. There was something satisfying about eating steaming food and feeling it go down my throat. The weather was crappy and having hot lunch was deeply comforting. Sometimes it just feels good to eat even when (or because) you don’t have a choice in meals. I’m zen about it.
I probably could not have taken on this project if I didn’t have a nice long summer break in the middle of the year. I’m looking forward to eating lunches I prepare myself.
However…
I’m thinking about doing some kind of extension of the project over the summer. I am definitely going to do some kind of “cleanse” in June. Nothing crazy, but more of a “30 days of whole foods.”
It would be fun to travel to a country where school is in session and see what they are eating. That would be hard to swing, but it would be so interesting.
Or I could try to make a healthy lunch every day for the cost of a school lunch $2.92 (per the School Nutrition Association). The average school lunch program gets reimbursed at $2.68, leaving a shortfall. I think I could make a healthy lunch for $1.00 per day.
Have any ideas for what I should do over the summer? You guys are so creative.
I’m blogging anonymously because I like my job and getting a paycheck. But I’m still putting my livelihood on the line by speaking up. Why? Because I want to raise awareness about school lunch. It may not be what every child in this country eats, but I believe the meal that I am showing represents what most children eat at lunch in the US.
This issue is important now because the Child Nutrition Act is being reauthorized and debated in Congress right now. I realize that everyone is strapped for cash right now. Individuals, companies, states, and countries are losing money. No matter what is going on in this world, we can’t forget the kids and the fact that many of them are at the mercy of school districts and corporations for their daily meal(s). It will cost the US more money in the future (healthcare costs) if schools don’t address the big problem that is staring them in the face everyday: childhood obesity. No matter how great a school is, it can’t control what the kids eat outside of school. But still schools can do better for kids while they are in building.
People say “school lunches have always been bad.” But actually I think in a lot of places they have gotten worse as far as quality and variety are concerned. Considering all of the powerful health, wellness, and nutrition research that has come out over the past thirty years, school lunches have not kept up with the latest medical advice.
I’ve been very stressed out about this project recently. I really love my school, the principal and the lunch manager a lot. I respect them. The principal is fair and is a strong leader. The lunch manager is kind to me and to the kids. And then I go home and do this with my limited spare time. I feel a lot of guilt and turmoil about what I’m doing here. I’m waiting for the moment I’m called to the principal’s office and let go. I do believe it’s a matter of “when” not “if” they both find out and it’s curtains for me and then of course the project. I want them to know that the project is not about individuals in one school, but about a country full of children who need better food models.
I’m getting a lot of requests for interviews from major newspapers and other news outlets (I have done other interviews for media with smaller distribution and/or all online). Many assure me of my anonymity, but if I get major attention even without my real name, well, someone is going to put 2 + 2 together. All that is needed is one person sending one email to all lunch room managers and asking, “Who’s eating school lunch every day?” Then they get a short list …and I’ll be carrying a cardboard box to my car.
My husband says, “You’re paranoid! Stop it.” But in a subsequent discussion he said, “You’re not going to lose your job, are you?”
Sweetie, when I decided to do this blog, even though I thought I would not get a comment for a few months (it took just a few days) and that I thought maybe in a few months I might get 5-10 hits per week (I’m averaging 1,000 to 4,000 per day)…. well, it’s not looking good. I’m just hoping to finish out the school year…
I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about what changes would make school lunch better for students. Here’s what I’ve got so far (I might be shooting for the moon here):
1) Commit to offering pizza only once per month and removing hot dogs from the menu.
2) Offer a piece of fruit at every meal in place of a fruit cup, fruit juice or icee. The fruit part of the meal should be actual fruit and it should be sliced so that kids can grab it and eat it.
3) Allow parents, educators, and students access to nutritional information for each meal. It can be online.
4) Offer greens (spinach, salad, etc) in a salad bar to students every day and educate them on how to make a salad.
5) Remove pre-packaged items (bagel dogs, peanut butter sandwiches, cheese sandwiches, etc) from the menu and replace with casseroles, soups, wraps, or fresh-made PB&Js (all of which are cost-efficient and can be made in very large batches).
6) Commit to a 50% to 75% reduction of plastic/paper containers and remove all styrofoam from the cafeteria. Install dishwashers in all schools (like it used to be).
7) Offer more options geared towards students with allergies and intolerances (lactose, wheat, nut, etc). Might as well educate students on what “lactose intolerant” means and what “allergy” means so they can be on the look-out.
8) Every school has a fully operational kitchen with dishwasher and cooking staff. If it means hiring more workers, let’s think of it as a “stimulus plan.” It’s worth it not to truck in all of this stuff.
9) Every school incorporates new nutrition-based cooking curriculum to students of all ages and requires the students to enter the kitchen and learn basic snack and meal prep. Even pre-schoolers can spread peanut butter or soy-nut butter on celery and put little raisins on top.
10) Teach students where their food comes from by taking a trip to a farm or planting a school garden so that they can be invested in food and have an experience in DIRT! “Dirty” is not a bad word.
11) Actively incorporate recycling into the school program and instruct students on how to recycle and what can be recycled and why it’s important.
What do you want for students’ lunches? I’m going to write a School Lunch Bill of Rights based on my thoughts and your feedback/ideas.
Today’s menu: cheese croissant, broccoli, fruit jello, milk (not pictured)
Stale. Enough said.
Today’s menu: chili, beans, tortilla chips, icee, milk
So…the chili was actually quite good and I ate the beans and chips too. I couldn’t bring myself to eat the icee, but I did force myself to try it. The sweetness was overpowering. I winced. I don’t have a clue how much high fructose corn syrup was in it, but I couldn’t stomach more than a drop or two.
I talked to two of my students about what they ate at lunch. They told me they ate the icees (evidence: red stains around lips and on shirt), the chips, and the milk. The rest they threw away. Can you imagine the spike in blood sugar?
I don’t think that students should be offered “icees” at school. Since it’s coming from the school, why would they suspect that it might be bad for them? About 30-45 minutes after lunch one of the students I interviewed seemed to “crash” physically (some tears about a minor offense from a classmate). This same student seemed pretty spaced out. What are we doing to kids?