Healthy And Desirable

Schools Strive To Meet Standards, Entice Students

Daisy Melendez eats an apple Thursday as part of her breakfast in Kelli Wineman’s second-grade class at Bayyari Elementary School in Springdale. The school is one of five in the Springdale School District participating in the Breakfast in the Classroom program sponsored by the Walmart Foundation.
Daisy Melendez eats an apple Thursday as part of her breakfast in Kelli Wineman’s second-grade class at Bayyari Elementary School in Springdale. The school is one of five in the Springdale School District participating in the Breakfast in the Classroom program sponsored by the Walmart Foundation.

— Mitch Marshall swears his lunch consists of more than just a big bag of Doritos.

“My dad just put what was left of it in my lunch. I couldn’t eat just a whole bag of chips,” the high school junior said Friday.

At A Glance (w/logo)

School Meal Program Requirements

• Fruit, Vegetables: 3⁄4-1 cup of vegetables plus 1⁄2-1 cup of fruit per day

• Meat/Meat Alternate: Grades K-5: 1 onces daily (8-10 ounces weekly), Grades 6-8: 1 ounces daily (9-10 ounces weekly), Grades 9-12: 2 ounces daily (10-12 ounces weekly)

• Grains: 1 serving per day; Grades K-8 get 1 ounces daily; Grades 9-12 get 2 ounces daily

• Whole Grains: At least half of the grains must be whole grain-rich. Beginning July 2014, all grains must be whole grain.

• Milk: 1 cup. Variety of fat contents allowed; flavor not restricted.

• Sodium: Reduce, no set targets until 2014-15 school year, then, lunch must drop to 1,230 milligrams for K-5; 1,360 milligrams for 6-8; 1,420 milligrams for 9-12

• Saturated Fat: Zero grams per serving

Source: U.S. Department of Agriculture

Across the cafeteria at Fayetteville High School, senior Ashlyn Nilsen and junior Mackenzie Loney chose made-to-order salads from the cafeteria.

“Sometimes I bring lunch from home, but I probably get a salad a couple of times a week,” Nilsen said.

Thirty miles north, Hunter Eggebraaten eats off the menu at Washington Junior High in Bentonville. After years bringing his own lunch, he’s particularly impressed by the nachos and the hot chocolate, as well as healthier options like fruits and vegetable. The carrots are sometimes a bit hard, “But I still eat them,” he said. “The school lunches are actually pretty good.”

Across the region, food-service professionals face a challenge with school menus, trying to balance calories, grain and protein with taste and practicality, serving as many as 3,000 students each day.

“We’ve had to include a dessert like pudding in some offerings just to reach the calorie minimums, since we can only give so much meat or grain,” said Cricket Scott, director of nutrition services for Aramark, the Bentonville school food contractor. “We’ve had to get creative to keep up some variety.”

Federal school meal rules from the U.S. Department of Agriculture have long required minimum levels for calories, grain and protein in school meals, but new nutrition guidelines enacted last year also cap the maximums of all those things. Strict limits on salt are also planned starting next year.

Backlash from students, parents and school nutritionists, however, prompted the USDA to relax protein, grain and calorie limits this semester. Sen. Mark Pryor, D-Ark., has drafted legislation that would make the relaxed standards permanent, said Lucy Speed, a spokeswoman for Pryor’s office. The bill is being circulated for comment, but hasn’t been filed in the Senate yet, Speed said.

Those rules, along with shifts in eating habits, mean that menu planning can mean the difference between good nutrition for students, and increased wasting of food.

“It doesn’t matter how nutritious a meal is if the kids won’t eat it,” said Carol Godfrey, food services director for Springdale schools. “We don’t want to feed the trash cans, we want to feed the kids.”

That’s especially true for kids who may not be getting all the nutrition they need at home, she said. In Springdale, 64 percent of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunches based on family income. More than half the students in Rogers schools, 59 percent, qualify, along with 40 percent of Fayetteville students and 28 percent in Bentonville.

Fish, no matter how it was prepared, failed to gain popularity among Springdale students, Godfrey said. Turkey and dressing was a favorite among teachers, but shunned by students.

Fish sticks, sandwiches, even fish tacos, were mostly ignored. The district still offers some fish, but has cut back sharply.

“We always offer two or three choices, depending on age, and fish just didn’t resonate,” she said.

Bentonville’s experience with fish has been more positive, as more kids incorporate it into vegetarian diets, Scott said.

“We’re seeing more kids, at younger ages, who are experimenting with vegetarian and vegan alternatives, and that does play into our planning,” Scott said. “We also weren’t seeing a lot of kids pick rice or bean dishes, but the new Tex-Mex bar has really improved that.”

Peanut butter, long a staple of many brown-bag lunches, has essentially disappeared from lunchroom offerings due to concerns about peanut allergies. Sun butter, made from sunflower seeds, has proved a popular alternative in Springdale schools, Godfrey said.

Even presentation plays a role, as high school students are more likely to choose cut-up or pre-skinned fruit over a whole apple or orange, Scott said.

That didn’t stop Juan Alvarez from grabbing an apple on Friday at Fayetteville High. Like most who choose whole fruit, the apple was less a part of lunch and more a snack for later, the sophomore said.

Younger students tend to favor processed versions of most foods over fresh varieties, Godfrey said.

“Offer baked chicken, and they’ll thumb their noses, but chicken nuggets are a big hit,” she said. “They’re dipable, they’re easy to eat, and for a lot of kids, it’s closer to what they’re used to eating at home. Offer younger kids a choice between a pre-made sub sandwich and made-from-scratch lasagna, and they’ll almost all choose the sub.”

The planned salt, or sodium, limits, could also impact student choices, Godfrey said. Lower-sodium hot dogs, ham and ketchup are on the way, but finding a low-sodium mashed potato mix presents a unique challenge.

“The kids love mashed potatoes, but we’ve yet to find a low-sodium version they find appealing,” she said. “The way high school football players put down mashed potatoes is really a sight to see.”

The planning continues to evolve as more schools offer breakfast to students. A few are also experimenting with dinner menus for student in after-school programs.

At some level, nutrition comes down to educating students and parents, Scott said.

That’s why Marshall dug into his bag Friday to prove there was more to lunch than nacho-flavored chips, and why Nilsen knows there’s more to healthy eating than just hitting the salad bar.

“I love the fresh veggies I can put in my salad,” she said. “But the kid in front of me put cheese, a little lettuce, more cheese, dressing and more cheese on his. We’re not eating the same lunch.”

Misty Gittings contributed to this report.

By The Numbers

School Lunch Caloric Range

The U.S. Department of Agriculture requires school meals minimum and maximum calories range between:

Lunch

• 550-650: Grades K-5

• 600-700: Grades 6-8

• 750-850: Grades 9-12

Breakfast

• 350-500: Grades K-5

• 400-550: Grades 6-8

• 450-600: Grades 9-12

Source: Department of Agriculture

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