Recent press coverage has drawn a lot of critical attention to the new school food in the Los Angeles Unified School District. The school district’s menu changed dramatically this year in an effort to meet upcoming stricter nutrition standards for school meals and take a stand against the industry standard of pizza, french fries, and tater tots. Articles like this LA Times story and this interview with LAUSD food service director on Airtalk highlight how the district’s new lunch menu (filled with new items such as mesquite chicken, whole-wheat chow mein, and Greek salad) has met with opposition from students, parents, teachers, and administrators alike.
The Healthy School Food Coalition has worked with both parent advocates and the school district itself on reform in the school meal program since 2001. We understand that there are a lot of problems with the school food system and that meal service in LAUSD continues to need a lot of improvement. We also understand that the school food system is complex and that there are many factors determining what food is served, and how, and why.
Anyone who has spent time with LAUSD Food Services Director Dennis Barrett has heard him refer to the National School Lunch & Breakfast Programs as “the greatest hidden treasure in America.” He says so because the program supplies 2 free meals a day to millions of low-income children, and extremely low-cost meals (usually under $2) to any school child regardless of income. LAUSD alone serves over 600,000 such meals every day. When a school district this large sets out to make its meals healthier and undo the well-established stereotype of “county food,” it really means something.
In a school district with nearly 700,000 students spread among 900 school facilities serving the same menu every day, no change is likely to go smoothly. The development of a healthy menu without fast-food items is a process, one that is challenged by many obstacles (deliveries, supplier negotiations, staff training, etc.) in addition to outcry by students who are skeptical of change. What can we do as advocates of healthy food for children? TRY THE FOOD. Try it. Get your kids to try it. Get your kid’s teacher to try it. Supporting change in the school meal program is essential to moving towards healthier meals, healthier schools, and healthier children.
