In a nationwide survey of children age 10 to 17, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that 15 percent had a body mass index (BMI) that classified them as overweight, and 16 percent were considered obese.
United Fresh Produce Association Foundation is addressing the problem head-on with a campaign for “A Salad Bar in Every School.” The foundation launched the program in February and is partnering with industry members to donate salad bars to schools. The association also is working with members of Congress to increase the consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables in school-aged children by increasing the funding for school meal programs and other food assistance programs.
The association’s work has been recognized by the Obama administration, which is working to address childhood obesity. First Lady Michelle Obama commended United Fresh and its members for the Salad Bar in Every School program during the United Fresh show in Las Vegas April 20-23.
The first school to receive a salad bar from the foundation was an elementary school in Washington, D.C. That salad bar was used on Capital Hill for a Fresh Festival on Sept. 9, 2009, where lawmakers and their staff could sample fresh produce. The event was designed to bring attention to United Fresh’s salad bar policy, and encourage lawmakers to support the initiative in the Child Nutrition Act.
The foundation donated two salad bars following the Las Vegas show to two local elementary schools. The Nye County School District in Nevada was chosen as the recipients of the salad bars for its work in improving nutrition and encouraging consumption of fruits and vegetables, according to United Fresh.
J.G. Johnson Elementary School and Manse Elementary serve more than 450 students and both schools participate in the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Snack program, which provides each student with a fresh fruit or vegetable snack every day. Not only have the children had improved diets from the program, they’ve also been exposed to new produce items and learned why they’re good for their bodies.
“These students have learned so much,” said Pat Garlin, Nye County School District food service coordinator.
“The kids can’t wait,” said Evangelyn Visser, principal of Manse Elementary School.
Visser said the children only get fresh fruit a couple times a week, and were looking forward to having additional choices in the form of fresh fruit and vegetables every day.
That is the goal of the initiative – to improve healthful choices for schoolchildren and teach them to make good decisions about meals and snacks. The snack program and school salad bars work, said Lorelei DiSogra, vice president of nutrition and health for United Fresh.
“Nye County has wanted salad bars for their schools for several years. They feel strongly that salad bars will offer their students a daily variety of fruits and vegetables with their lunch and will increase consumption,” she said. “Both salad bars and the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Snack Program are evidence-based strategies to increase children’s consumption of fruits and vegetables.”
With the change in the administration in Washingtion, D.C., there’s optimism in the produce industry that programs will incorporate more fruits and vegetables. In addition to the reauthorization of childhood nutrition legislation, Representatives Sam Farr and Adam Putnam introduced the Children’s Fruit and Vegetable Act of 2009, which supports salad bars, increases funding for equipment in schools and helps schools meet dietary guidelines.
“The bill by Congressman Farr and co-authored with Putnam contains almost all of our priorities. First is the salad bar policy for salad bars in every school. Different segments of the produce industry see salad bars as traditional salads but what we’re envisioning is a bar that has a lettuce salads, but also fruit salads and other fresh produce items – some are calling it a garden bar instead of a salad bar. I think garden bar is cute, too. That variety would change over time and we know that over time, exposure to fruit and vegetables increases consumption, especially among children,” DiSogra said. “We’re working to get those other provisions into the Farr bill – not just salad bars, but equipment for school cafeterias and farm-to-school. There’s a big piece about farm-to-school in that bill.”
The association would also like to see USDA actively support childhood nutrition programs, not just through legislation forcing funding.
“Our goal is to see a policy that not requires, but USDA encourages a salad bar in every school to increase consumption of fruit and vegetables. The government hasn’t done a lot to really increase consumption in schools. We really think that we would like to see some strong positions about increasing consumption and strategies that show school how to make this work, and that it works. It could be the big foodservice bags or the single serve snack packs,” DiSogra said.
The salad bar donations were done in partnership with the manufacturers of the salad bars, The Vollrath Co. and Cambro Manufacturing Co. The two salad bar lines are both preferred vendors of the school salad bar program.
Cambro donated its Versa Food Bar, a non-electrical self-serve line made of plastic. It has built-in sneeze guards and side rails that fold in to fit through standard doorways. Using the company’s Buffet Camchillers, food can be kept cold for hours. It is 50 inches long and comes in two heights, 30 inches tall for elementary schools and 36 inches tall for high schools.
The Vollrath Salad Bar is an electrically refrigerated unit that is 60 inches long and either 30 inches tall or 34 inches tall for elementary and high school, respectively. It is stainless steel and has built-in graphics and signage space on the base. With the tray rests folded down, it also will fit through a standard doorway. The package going to the school includes pans and serving utensils, which are made with anti-microbial plastics.
Sidebar:
NatureSeal supports salad bar program with its own donation
NatureSeal, Westport, Conn., showed its support for the school salad bar program at the United Fresh show by purchasing a salad bar to be donated to the Sandy S. Miller School in Nevada.
The company also donated its foodservice product to the three Nevada schools receiving salad bars. The NatureSeal product allows the foodservice staff to treat the produce in advance of serving for the freshest look and taste possible. The company said this will expose more students to the fresh-cut produce available and open up more healthful food experiences.
