Posts Tagged ‘school lunches’
Posted by Lynn Norusis / Monday, October 24th, 2011
McDonnell and Romney stomping in Fairfax Wednesday
Fairfax parents push for ‘real food’ for their kids
Census requires Fairfax to have Spanish election materials
Nine-year-old victim of attempted abduction in Spotsylvania
Posted by The Editorial Desk / Thursday, March 18th, 2010
Image: National School Lunch Program
A few weeks ago I wrote about the current food revolution regarding school lunch programs. But how many parents, or teachers, are aware of what students are actually eating?
An anonymous teacher somewhere in the US has decided to eat a school lunch every day during 2010 and blog about it in Fed Up With Lunch: The School Lunch Project. It’s an interesting read and occasionally has guest bloggers, including one food service director and teachers from other areas of the country.
American Lunchroom and Better D.C. School Food are just two blogs focused on reforming the school lunch issue; the first focuses on nation-wide lunches with submissions by teachers.
To get a child’s perspective, visit School Lunch Found Guilty, a blog about New York’s school lunches.
There is hope, however, as some school systems have implemented a ‘Food is Elementary’ curriculum.
The state of Virginia posts its school lunch menus online. Below is a list of some Northern Virginia counties and their online menus.
-Arlington County. Apparently most of the produce in Arlington Public Schools is provided by local farms and milk has no artificial growth hormones.
-Fairfax County menus are determined based on Dietary Guidelines for Americans (MyPyramid) and student preference (or food tasting parties), with no more than an average of 30% calories from fat and 10% calories from saturated fat over the course of a week.
-Loudoun County has a list of ingredients online; each lunch contains 1 serving of meat, 3 servings of fruits and vegetables, 1 serving of milk, and at least 1 serving of bread or grain.
-Prince William County. Tonight (March 18) parents and children can vote on their favorite school menu options at Hylton High School in the PWC Annual School Food Show. Call 703-791-7314 for a reservation.
A new documentary, Lunch Line, will debut this spring and highlights the history and development of the school lunch program and the politics behind feeding millions of children through the National School Lunch Program.
(Video: Lunch Line)
For a look closer to home, check out Lunch at the Environmental Film Festival on Monday, March 22nd.
While schools may offer affordable and nutritious options for student lunch meals, the decision ultimately comes down to the child. If a child does not learn at home or in school what is healthy, he will continue eating whatever looks good or is easily accessible—usually foods that are high in sugar or fat.
–Aisha Salazar
Posted by The Editorial Desk / Monday, March 8th, 2010
I don’t get a lot of celebrity ads.
For instance, it’s beyond me why Cisco has hitched their wagon to Ellen Page. Is she a closet networking genius?
I mean, at least get one of the faux dorks from The Big Bang Theory or Attack of the Show’s Olivia Munn if you want to appeal to both casual observers and Interweb cognescenti.
Page, however, comes off as refreshingly blunt in some recent Take Part spots:
(Video: Take Part)
The advocacy campaign seeks to build on the popularity of Oscar-nominated Food, Inc. by challenging people to take full responsibility of their eating habits and challenge the status quo of commercial food production.
To that end, Page also weighs in on healthy school lunches and local farmers markets.
Activist eating?
Now, that’s something an indie film starlet MIGHT know something about.
–Warren