I am a food service director of a public school in Iowa, the same school I graduated from so I have a real heart for my school and it’s students. I would like to see reevaluation and reform of how the USDA determines the meal plan requirements and procurement requirements for school meals.
I would also like to see reevaluation and reform of who is chosen to be on the respective committees that dictate these policies.
The burden on directors and meal planners to produce and purchace compliant and enjoyable meals/products is too much dictated by “nutrition” guidelines and requirements that may or may not be actually healthy for students. Along with that is the procurement procedures that limit the practical way a department can purchase food that may actually be more nutrious.
The issue is vast but the solution is simple: deregulate and reestablish viable and relevant rules determined by people who are qualified and disconnected from industries that might benefit from them being on said committees.
Excellent policy changes!
Locally, we’ve seen teen athletes and young children on the same meal schedule - and anyone who’s ever raised a teen knows that’s ridiculous.
As an add-on, I’d like to see schools encouraged to take advantage of local food resources (we have local eggs, dairy, meat production, and some vegie production).
One more add on: I’d like to see a program to minimize food waste as well, such as making goods passing their “use-by” date available to local livestock farmers, crop farmers, or gardeners for use in composting or as fodder, as appropriate.
We need to SERIOUSLY decrease the amount of sugar in schools. My kids (if they ate breakfast and lunch) at school could consume easily over 40g of sugar between cereal, poptart, french toast, cinnamon rolls, chocolate milk, pizza, carb dense meals. With so many kids with adhd or not it’s no wonder kids can’t focus. Add insane amounts of sitting for elementary students and screen time it’s a mess.
Lifting regulations on meal patterns and regulations would go along way to making it easier and practical to produce more scratch cooked meals with less emphasis on compliant premade options.
Keeping things local will give good service departments the ability to make choices that would best serve their students with out being burdened by regulations that might be unnecessary.
I would love to see local farm to table type food sourcing for school children. Today’s meals served at public schools are pure poison and devoid of necessary nutrients for children’s development and growth. Many behaviors that teachers must deal with are due to the ultra processed food served to our children.
My Granddaughter’s school lunch menu had corndogs on Tues and hot dogs on Thurs in the same week. We can and must do better for our children!!
I would especially like not to eat bugs! No powered by crickets or dyes made from Bugs.
Let’s make America’s food supply healthy and safe most especially for the future Generations!