School Food

What’s going on today?

• Getting healthy food into schools

• Catalyst “Family Food” game

• Questions you might get from your principal and school food service

• Things you can do to get started in your school >>>

Why school food?

•We’re there five days a week!

•We eat lunch there, and sometimes breakfast, and lots of snacks.

•We deserve healthy options!

What do students think?

•“Family Food” Time!

It’s like Family Feud, but all about food and healthy eating!

Family Food!

• 2 “families”

• About 8 people per team

• 2 rounds

Example: What’s your favorite TVshow?

1. Gossip Girl

2. The Hills

3. The City

4. Scrubs

5. American Idol

Round 1

First word high school students think of when they

hear the word fruit:

1. Banana2. Apple3. Grapes4. Healthy5. Fresh

What guides your choices of the foods you choose

to eat at school?

1. Price2. Appearance3. How hungry I am4. What is offered that day5. What I am craving

Name a food offered in a school’s

cafeteria:

1. Pizza2. Taco3. Salad4. Hamburger5. Grilled Cheese

Round 2

First word high school students think of when they hear the word pop:

1. Vending machine2. Sugar3. Caffeine4. Unhealthy5. Delicious

Name a word students would use to describe

their school lunch:

1. Gross2. Nasty3. Alright4. Sketchy5. Yuck

What kinds of vegetables are regularly offered in

your school lunch?

1. Lettuce2. Cucumbers3. Tomatoes4. Carrots5. None

Where do we start?

• Every school is different

• More info about our schools

• Answering the questions your school might have

• Taking action in your schools!

Daniela: SouthWest

•Lunch and Breakfast:– Pre-packaged– Fruits and veggies don’t always look

good– Lots of fast food options near campus

•Vending and Snacks:– No pop (water, juice, sports drinks)

– New healthy vending options

•What about student input?

Jessie: WBL North Campus

•Lunch and Breakfast:– Lots of “competitive” foods -

snack bar, a la carte, etc.– Few healthy options

•Vending and Snacks– Contract with a soft drink

company– Resistance from administration to

introduce healthy options

•Making my case >>>

Why Healthy Options?

1. Healthy students

2. Better grades and academic performance

3. It can make financial sense - healthy food doesn’t necessarily need to cost more.

FAQ’sHow will students

react?

• Students often like healthy options once they try them!

• In Hopkins schools, the pizza is on whole-wheat crust, the milk is organic and lunch sales are up.

• Students here at the college of St. Scholastica choose cut up veggies, pre-made salads, and fruits over a burger and fries.

FAQ’swhat are the advantages?

• Start developing healthy eating habits for life

• The more students are exposed to healthy options the more they are likely to lean towards healthier options!

• Long-term this means more healthy people - which is always good :)

FAQ’swhat’s the academic

value?

• Healthy Foods = Better Health. Better Grades. Better Behavior.

• Students will feel better, be more awake and attentive in school.

• Staying awake definitely = better academic performance!

FAQ’sHow would we pay

for it?

• Your school can make a lot of these changes within their existing budget.

• And there are a ton of examples out there of schools introducing healthy options and school food sales going up! *(You can check out the Catalyst website for links to lots of examples!)

• And there are even grants available to support healthy eating programs.

Example:

Baltimore Peaches

• Baltimore, MD was able to get fresh, local peaches of 8 cents each!

• If they had gone the traditional route, and ordered canned peaches from the federal government, it would have cost 22 cents per peach - almost three times as much!

• 14 cents x 83,000 students = $11,620 !

Example:

What about pop?

• The big pop vendors also market their own brands of water.

• Schools across the country are getting rid of pop machines and switching over to water - and they don’t even need to change vendors.

• This is an easy change your school can look into if they haven’t already.

Where can we find more info?

www.bethecatalyst.org

Planning for your school:

• Things you can do when you get home: Set up a meeting - principal, food

service Get your friends involved Put together info for the meeting Organize an activism event!

Planning for your school:

• So let’s take a few minutes to get started: Key messages and next steps for talking

to principal and food service staff

How can you promote healthy choices in your school?

What are your in-school activism ideas?

• Report back!