Inside School Food

First off, stop calling it a “cafeteria.” And don’t just re-configure the physical space and the equipment, but the entire dining experience. San Francisco Unified School District is doing just that, in partnership with one of the world’s sharpest, most sought-after design firms. More than 1,300 school community stakeholders have weighed in on a vision for the future that looks and feels both radical and perfectly natural—a paradigm shift away from assembly-line style service to more intuitive models that comfortably set young customers before their food, and one another. This program was brought to you by Fairway Market.

“How might we use technology to both engage with the students and give them an active voice and control over their meal program but also provide a way for Student Nutrition Services to get more real time information from students.” [28:00]

—Zetta Reicker on Inside School Food

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In West Virginia, many children suffer from levels childhood poverty, hunger, and obesity well above the national average. To meet this troubling challenge, the state’s Department of Education has been exceptionally energetic in its top-down efforts to win student acceptance of healthier menus while eliminating costly inefficiencies in the system. Is it working? Rick Goff, Executive Director of the Office of Child Nutrition, says it is. Join us to hear about his compelling testimony before the Senate Agriculture Committee last month, in its first hearing related to CNR 2015. This program was brought to you by Cain Vineyard & Winery.

“We want to do what’s in the child’s best interest.At the end of the day, that will be our guiding principle.” [10:00]

“You can’t just have a healthy room in a building, the whole building has to be healthy.” [12:00]

“I think you’ll see a day when the meal service is treated just like the rest of the learning experience.” [38:00]

–Rick Goff on Inside School Food

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Cyndie Story has consulted in school kitchens in 37 states, where she has spread a gospel of work simplification that can transform the lives of food service staff. The humility and humor with which she approaches the job makes her an inspirational figure. “I love to laugh,” she says, “and once we laugh, learning begins.” Join us for a tour of Chef Cyndie’s best practices, honed over 25 years on the job. This program was brought to you by Cain Vineyard and Winery.

“My dad always told me in order to do well in a job you need to know how to do every part of the operation.” [9:00]

“They don’t ask for things, they are going to figure out that problem in the most inventive way [School Cooks].” [14:00]

— Chef Cyndie Story on Inside School Food

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Where do you set your goal for local food purchasing? How about 50 percent of your total food budget? How about trying to do this in Maine? In Portland, ME, Mayor Michael Brennan believes it can be done; and the school district’s food service director, Ron Adams, is getting close. No, they don’t have extra money. And Portland students are as resistant to change as kids anywhere else. But there’s deep political will, and pressure, in a city widely regarded as one of the foodiest and most locavore in the nation. This program was brought to you by Cain Vineyard and Winery.

“We made a great opportunity for the students to understand the food and then enjoy the food.” [28:00]

— Ron Adams on Inside School Food

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El Monte City School District is celebrated as a leading edge reformer well beyond the cafeteria. Over the years, this high-needs district has established a rigorous, comprehensive approach to student wellness that attempts to touch every aspect of their lives in and out of school. The exuberant press and many awards it’s attracted a along the way are enough to make El Monte seem charmed. But there’s no secret sauce. They’re just tenacious here, and they’ve been that way for years. This program was brought to you by Cain Vineyard & Winery.

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Since July 2014, an interim USDA regulation on foods sold outside the reimbursable meals program requires healthier offerings nationwide. But questions remain. Many of the new “Smart Snacks” are reformulated copycats of highly processed stuff sold outside school. In some states, liberal waivers of restrictions on bake sales and junk-food fundraisers keep sugar levels high. Should we be worried? Not necessarily, say today’s guests. Districts can choose to adopt (or retain) stricter standards, setting a successful example that others can emulate. This program was brought to you by Whole Foods Market

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Amid widespread complaints about discarded school food, enter a new study that tells us things may be not as bad as they seem. Careful measurements of plate waste taken in twelve Connecticut schools in 2012, 2013, and 2014 tell a different story, of students eating better and wasting less as they adjust to changes on their lunch trays. Lead author Marlene Schwartz, Director of the Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity, unpacks this new data and reviews the study’s conclusions.

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Of course students eat better when healthy food is prepared with care and skill. We all knew that. Now we have important new research to back us up, the result of a year-long collaboration between the Harvard School of Public Health and Project Bread’s Chefs in Schools program. The study’s two leaders–the head author and the head chef–describe the complexity involved in making targeted changes in the school kitchen and cafeteria while systematically assessing the impacts. This program was brought to you by Visit Napa Valley.

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Processed foods: Whether you need them oven-ready or as components for speed scratch, you probably want them without additives you don’t recognize or can’t pronounce. You want fresh and vivid flavors kids will go for, and you would prefer to know where and how the ingredients were grown. Possible? Two progressive vendors say yes, if you can make just a little extra wiggle room in your budget. This program was sponsored by Cain Vineyard and Winery.

“Over the last ten years, there’s been a huge push to bring better food into the school market… School food directors are promoting the attributes of our products to parents and students to say, “hey, school food service is changing.” [16:00]

— Rod Friesen on Inside School Food

“I think that, regardless of how the nutrition rules change, the desire we’re seeing in the school marketplace for clean label, healthier items is going to continue to grow… Parents are demanding healthier foods. Children are too. I’ve had 6th graders ask to see our nutrition labels!”

— Toni Antonellis on Inside School Food

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It’s planning season for USDA summer meals sponsors–the people who know that, for children from food-insecure homes, the last day of school isn’t necessarily a happy occasion. Currently, only a small fraction of students eligible for federally funded summer meals actually get them. Today’s guests talk about why, and what school districts can do to help meet the need. The best programs, they say, are served up with sides of fun. This program was sponsored by Cain Vineyard and Winery.

“We heard from the Ohio Association of Food Banks about a 12-year-old boy who rode his bicycle five miles along the highway to get to the (summer meal) site. When he got there, he asked, ‘Can I take a lunch home to my little brother? He’s not old enough to ride his bike here.’ … But the kids aren’t permitted to take meals to go.”

— Jillien Meier on Inside School Food

“I feel that if we’re going to make a sustainable difference in ending hunger in our community that we need to involve as many partners as we can… We partner to bring community garden boxes to our schools, and families adopt them. We provide them with the plants, the seeds, the dirt, the tools, and we have a master gardener on hand during summer feeding.”

— Winnie Brewer on Inside School Food

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