K12 Lunch

Meals Plus

2011-11-16T15:27:00.001-06:00

Take some time and look at the following food service management program www.mealsplus.com ....this is a complete package at a great price!

Meals Plus

2010-12-06T12:57:00.001-06:00

Take some time and look at the following food service management program www.mealsplus.com ....this is a complete package at a great price!

Salad Bar Project

2010-12-06T12:47:00.002-06:00

Take a moment to visit the following link and sign up for the opportunity to receive a free salad bar for you school

www.saladbarproject.org

Free web tool for food laws

2010-04-23T09:21:00.003-05:00

A new database that tracks state and federal legislative efforts that relate to food, and the lobbying that goes on for and against those issues is available on the web.

Check it out

First Lady Promotes School Nutrition

2010-04-06T08:01:00.001-05:00

First Lady Obama praised the efforts and achievements of the nation’s school nutrition professionals stating that “...most people don’t know the cafeteria is one of the most important classrooms in the school.”

Teaching kids to cook

2010-04-06T07:51:00.002-05:00

In an effort to combat childhood obesity Somerville MA is getting the magazine Chop Chop in the hands of elementary students. The hope is to raise awareness and promote healthy eating habits by teaching kids how to eat healthy, and to have fun with cooking.

Click here for the full story

Jamie Oliver

2010-03-26T10:15:00.004-05:00

Jamie Oliver needs your support, he is fighting for good food for children in the US, please follow the link and make sure to sign his petition!

http://www.jamieoliver.com/

Read It Before You Eat It

2010-03-23T11:58:00.004-05:00

The USDA has made a very handy chart available in regards to reading nutrition labels. Most people will look at the label but how many know what they are looking at? If you would like a copy of this click on the link below.

USDA Nutrition Label Instructions

K12lunch.com

2010-03-23T11:52:00.002-05:00

We have a new look to our website, I really like the way it turned out! Please check it out and let us know your thoughts.

www.k12lunch.com

Eat your Veggies!

2010-03-09T08:45:00.002-06:00

See how a Pittsburgh school is teaching kids about nutrition and at the same time helping the kids enjoy healthy foods.

Click Here

Wisconsin SNA Spring Show

2010-03-09T08:42:00.001-06:00

WI spring show is this week, I hope to see lots of people in attendance. I will hopefully have updates and pics next week.

National School Breakfast Week

2010-03-09T08:39:00.003-06:00

The USDA is asking for support across the country to help increase participation in the School Breakfast Program.

Click here for the press release

School Breakfast Week is almost here!

2010-03-02T09:15:00.002-06:00

March 8-12....what do you have planned for the week? The folks over at the Child Nutrition Outreach Program have some great ideas for making the week fun and memorable....check it out!

Click here for some great ideas

SNA-WI Spring Conference

2010-03-02T09:01:00.001-06:00

March 11, 2010
Country Springs Hotel – Water Park & Conference Center
2810 Golf Road
Waukesha, WI, 53187
Phone: 262-547-0201

I will be attending the show as a vendor this year, I hope to have pic's and updates a few days after the show. Hope to see lots of people there!

Noise Management for Cafeterias

2010-02-19T09:12:00.003-06:00

During one of my recent visits to a school cafeteria I came across a very cool noise management item. The item is called a Talk Light, it is a stop light that is noise activated, once the noise level reaches a certain decibel level the lights will change from green to yellow and eventually red. Once the red light is reached an alarm will go off for a few seconds. I was surprised to see how the kids reacted when the alarm went off, it got very quiet very quickly. I asked the lunchroom supervisor how she like the Talk Light and she said that it has been so nice to not have to yell above the noise to try and get the kids to quiet down.

Click here for more info on the Talk Light

Firebox Touch Screens

2010-02-16T10:06:00.004-06:00

I recently came across a school district using the Firebox displays. After taking a look I was really impressed at the quality behind this product. These monitors are very sturdy and nothing about them felt cheap. I then found out that they carried a 3 year warranty which made me looking even further into the line of displays. With many sizes available I think it would be hard to find a monitor that would not fit your point of sale needs. Check them out here

Protect Your Family from Type-2 Diabetes

2010-02-16T10:01:00.001-06:00

Very informative article.....please pass it on

Click here

Five Questions for: Katie Wilson

2010-02-09T12:05:00.000-06:00

Click here

Farm to School program changes kids' views on food

2010-02-08T09:46:00.000-06:00

Click here

First Lady to Launch Anti-Childhood Obesity Campaign

2010-02-08T09:42:00.001-06:00

Click Here

First lady takes aim at obesity

2010-02-05T14:48:00.001-06:00

Another article regarding Michelle Obama and her fight against childhood obesity.

Click here

USDA Announces Food Safety Initiatives for School Lunch and Other Food and Nutrition Assistance Programs

2010-02-05T10:28:00.000-06:00

Click here for the story

Health Fair

2010-02-04T08:08:00.000-06:00

Health fairs are good ways to educate parents and students on the benefits of health eating. They do however require lost of literature and planning. If you are not sure where to start I wold recommend checking out the Food and Nutrition Information Center (FNIC), they are part of the USDA and are willing to provide you info and handouts at little and sometimes no cost. A health fair is great way to get parents and school staff talking about healthy meal choices and it also gives you an opportunity to showcase the healthy options already being offered in your cafeterias.

FNIC Link

First Lady meets with lawmakers

2010-02-03T08:56:00.002-06:00

Michelle Obama is meeting with lawmakers to discuss childhood obesity. Having the first lady on your side can only help all you food service directors out there that are trying to provide healthy choices in the school.

Story here

School Nutrition and Fitness

2010-02-03T08:48:00.003-06:00

I talked with the owners of School Nutrition and Fitness.com about there recent showing at the CA food service show and they explained that it was a great showing this year. I had a chance to see the program in action and it seems to be the most complete and easy to use site on the market today. As a parent I really enjoyed being able to see nutrition labels on all the items my kids are offered. This is just one of the many excellent tools available in this vast program. I urge everyone in school food service to check it out.

School Nutrition and Fitness

Q & A with Mary Cheh on Fighting Obesity with “Healthy Schools”

2010-02-01T08:54:00.001-06:00

nice little article regarding the “Healthy Schools” legislation.

Click here

My trip to the SNA-WI’s Legislative Advocacy Day

2010-01-28T09:05:00.003-06:00

I have always respected school food service professionals for their dedication to the children and the lunch programs in their districts. After sitting in on the legislative meeting in Madison WI yesterday my respect has risen to new heights. The directors I listened to yesterday are very passionate about healthy food for the kids and I am sorry that it took me this long to see how important it really was. They are not lobbying for much, they just want the small percentage for reimbursement that was taken from them a couple of years ago back and they want healthy foods in the schools from "bell to bell" Although I was not able to help with the lobbying due to another appointment I got a great up close look at what these people deal with on a daily basis. I plan to attend again next year and hope to see many more people because they can use all the help they can get. There is power in numbers and the more support the WI-SNA has the better off the program and the children will be.

School visit

2010-01-26T07:43:00.002-06:00

I will be visiting with a private school tomorrow afternoon to discuss their point of sale needs. This school is currently in the market for a automated system, they will be looking to upgrade from a manual system. Tomorrow they will be seeing a demonstration of the LunchBox cafeteria management system. I plan to have more information to share on Thursday.

Health Fair

2010-01-26T07:37:00.002-06:00

House Committee on Agriculture

2010-01-25T13:05:00.001-06:00

View the schedule here

Healthy school lunch....a cause worth fighting for

2010-01-25T10:09:00.001-06:00

The New York Times has another great article regarding the fight for healthy meals.

Click here

Cashier eager for return from cancer fight

2010-01-25T10:03:00.003-06:00

I know that most of our post and links are regarding nutrition, meals, equipment etc. all these thing come together to help make a successful school lunch program. The following story is a little different, it shows that people really make a difference as well. I hope you all enjoy it as much as I did

Click here

Are school lunches getting healthier?

2010-01-25T09:44:00.002-06:00

An Iowa TV stations takes a look at how healthy school lunches are. Its a nice article that takes a look at how hard the School Nutrition Association is working to provide healthy meals. It also takes a look at the challenges the schools face on a daily basis.

Click here

Freshloc on display at California state show

2010-01-25T09:22:00.001-06:00

Freshloc is showing its new temperature monitoring system that updates every minute instead of every hour or so. This will sure to be a big help with your HACCP tracking.

Click here

60 years of service

2010-01-22T09:07:00.000-06:00

This is dedication

State of Wisconsin has the right idea

2010-01-22T09:05:00.001-06:00

Wisconsin has a program in place called REAP...in my opinion its is a step in the right direction for the children. Nice going Wisconsin, keep up the good work!

REAP....Farm to school

Tales from a D.C. School Kitchen

2010-01-21T08:41:00.001-06:00

This is a link to part one of a six part article.....very interesting stuff

Article here

SNA-WI’s Legislative Advocacy Day

2010-01-21T08:35:00.003-06:00

January 27th at the Capitol building in Madison WI school food service managers will be meeting with legislators to talk about funding and policies. For anyone interested in attending please click on the following link.

Click here

I am going to try and be in attendance and I will fill everyone in the following day.

California School Nutrition Annual Conference is next week!

2010-01-20T09:09:00.002-06:00

Make sure to check the k12lunch blog for updates on the show. I will be talking with a couple of vendors showcasing their products at the show and I look forward to sharing their feedback and photos with everyone. The CA annual conference starts on January 28th and runs through the 31st. Some updates will hopefully be up by Friday the 29th but most will be the following week. Make sure to stop back and check it out.

California School Nutrition Association

CDC's ideas on stopping childhood obesity

2010-01-20T08:02:00.002-06:00

The Center for Disease Control has done a study and published a report regarding childhood obesity. Very interesting stuff.

Click here for more info

School lunch's from around the world

2010-01-20T08:00:00.002-06:00

What are other countries around the world serving to the kids in school? this short article takes a closer looks at school nutrition on a global scale.

Click here for the story

Healthy meals vs. bottom line...double edge sword?

2010-01-19T11:34:00.004-06:00

We all know that healthy meals are important for the children but their are other factors in running a successful school food service program. The following article takes a closer look.

Click here

Give kids the food they deserve

2010-01-19T11:21:00.003-06:00

Here is a link to a site that is running a national campaign to improve the foods that kids are eating in school. The are trying to get the $1 per meal increased so schools can provide healthier options for the kids.

Check it out here

New healthy products introduced at conference

2010-01-19T07:45:00.006-06:00

Some of the big players in the school food service market are showcasing some exciting new and healthy products at the Florida state show this week.

Click here to check them out

School lunch and vegetarian options

2010-01-18T08:41:00.001-06:00

A recent nationwide survey by the School Nutrition Association shows that almost two thirds of this country’s school lunch programs now offer vegetarian fare on a regular basis.

Click here for the story

School lunchroom menus going digital

2010-01-15T09:36:00.001-06:00

Digital menu boards that display nutritional information will be on display at the California School Nutrition Association Conference on January 29th-30th.

Click here for more details

New York School Nutrition Show

2010-01-15T09:09:00.002-06:00

The New York School Nutrition Association annual show is pushing healthier choices, and this will no doubt be the trend for all state shows this coming year.

Click here for the story

More news regarding chocolate milk

2010-01-15T09:05:00.001-06:00

Just a couple days after the USDA announced that they were considering the removal of chocolate milk from school cafeterias one district may have another option.

Click here for the full article

School Nutrition and Fitness

2010-01-14T13:42:00.002-06:00

I have reached out to School Nutrition and Fitness owner/operator Mike Borges and gave him an opportunity to give me a brief overview of his product. Below is the info and some links to actual sites using his product....enjoy!

Nutrition Education websites for School Food & Nutrition Departments - The objective is to provide School Food Service Directors with an affordable, comprehensive and professional looking website to complement the district website and allow them to promote their nutrition programs by specifically focusing on the core values of School Food and Nutrition. The benefits are directed toward Students, Parents, Teachers, District Administration and the Community. It includes a complete set of Nutrition Lesson Plans organized by grade level and designed to fulfill the requirements of the CRE audit. The work and design is done…Directors can now easily promote their Nutrition Program, increase participation, and communicate Wellness throughout the district and the community.

See how these directors from around the country are changing perceptions, elevating their image of School Food Service and marketing their Nutrition programs…

Beverly Hills School District – Nutrition Service Department – CA
Fort Atkinson Schools – Student Nutrition Services Dept. - WI
Mesquite ISD – Nutrition Services - TX
Marion Community Schools – Food Services - Marion, IN
Alachua Food and Nutrition Services - Gainesville, FL

Key features include:

• Quality image and focus on promoting the nutrition program. No advertising or couponing.
• Simple and easy for parents, teachers and students to use…a quick link.
• Attractive look and layout. We match the look and layout to your district’s site so it looks like a department in the district.
• Customization. It is very user friendly, you have the ability to customize the different web pages as easy as using Word.
• Flexibility. A district can upload and display their own menus, nutritional info, photos, documents, videos, lesson plans, etc…very quick and easy
• Nutritional Information. You can display menu nutrient information automatically as a nutrition label or a summation of products
• Quarterly updates. We update the content, images and nutrition lessons quarterly
• Internal program development. Also includes internal operational sections for you and your staff like Marketing, Operations, Finance & Communications with things like “50 Ways to increase Participation”, “50 Ways to Decrease Costs”, “80 Ideas for a Fitness Fair”, “100 Ways to Improve Quality”

After an initial set up fee, the annual cost for the site is just $495 per year ($395 for districts of 3 or fewer schools).

Michael Borges
School Nutrition and Fitness
"Creating Lifelong Healthy Habits for Nutrition and Fitness"
www.SchoolNutritionandFitness.com
(714) 544-0574 x6 Office

Over half of public school students cannot afford school lunch

2010-01-14T12:00:00.000-06:00

Click here

Michelle Obama to take on child obesity

2010-01-14T11:08:00.002-06:00

Michelle Obama is looking to leave a lasting legacy on the growing childhood obesity issue in the US.

Click Here

Vending Machines in Schools

2010-01-14T08:15:00.003-06:00

This article explains how vending machines can be bad, but it dosent talk about some of the benefits of vending machines. Most point of sale progams now have an interface built in that allows communicating with vending machines. Now healthy reimbursable meals can be sold from them instead of "junk food". Check with your point of sale software providor for full details.

Farm fresh for the students

2010-01-14T07:52:00.001-06:00

School district looks to local farm as a healthy food source for school lunch Click Here for the full story

USDA considers getting rid of chocolate milk

2010-01-13T10:54:00.005-06:00

With chocolate milk having more calories the USDA is considering getting rid of the drink at lunch time.

Click here for the full story

School food service website

2010-01-12T15:53:00.004-06:00

Educating parents and students about nutrition and fitness is an important step in running a successful K-12 food service program, and one of the best ways to communicate that information is through a website. Don't know how to create a website or how to update information on an existing website? Not to worry, School Nutrition and Fitness can help. SN&F is a complete turn key website that can be customized to match your school. You have full control over what is on your site and what it looks like, and you don't have to learn any complicated software. All you need to be able to do is type! For more information on this great product click here

Healthy School Lunch

2010-01-12T14:48:00.002-06:00

Very interesting article regarding school lunches

Click here for article