Tags
chef ann cooper, fed up with lunch, let's move, michael pollan, mrs. q, national school lunch week, school lunch
It’s National School Lunch week and the media is flooded with this hot topic. My Edible Education class at Berkeley has decided to join in on the theme and is having Chef Ann Cooper lecture at tonight’s class. Chef Ann is the visionary behind many of the reforms in Berkeley school districts regarding school lunch. You can check out her website: The LunchBox and an article outlining her perspective on the topic.
Mrs. Q, a school teacher from Chicago, and the blogger behind “Fed Up With Lunch” revealed her identity and released a book about her experience. She photographed and documented a year’s worth of cafeteria food; it’s definitely an eye-opening account of what children are being fed every day.
President Obama released a Presidential Proclamation of National School Lunch week. He highlighted some of the achievements of Lady Obama’s (<3 her!!) Let’s Move Initiative, discusses The Healthy, Hunger Free Kids Act of 2010, and emphasized the importance of nutrition in schools.
But what truly got me excited this morning was watching the latest Nourish video (read about them here) featuring…. Professor Pollan!!
Now… it’s time for me to pack my own lunch!
Mouthfuls & Morsels 
As a teacher, I also get to see what kids are being fed on a daily basis. Fish shapes? Potato smiles? Yep, these are real dishes at my school. Scary, huh?
Chef Ann showed us a picture slide show of all the different shapes chicken nuggets are made into. Dinosaurs, stars, letters… so weird!
That video was so great! I think it sums up the school lunch situation very well and is practically a summary of what I read in Schlosser’s Fast Food Nation for my Food & Community class. It will be very handy if I want my family or friends to understand why I am so concerned about school lunches!
Eric Schlosser is scheduled to speak for our class and I have yet to read Fast Food Nation. I need to get on that!!