Jamie's Food Revolution

If you haven't yet seen British chef Jamie Oliver's new reality show, Jamie's Food Revolution, about trying to change school meals in one of the unhealthiest places in America, you can watch full episodes on ABC.com.  It's worth a watch: his earnest desire to help a town combat its alarming rates of overweight and obesity by serving real food instead of processed food at school stirs up mixed responses from residents.  While Huntington, WV has been singled out due to a CDC report that named it the most obese city in the country, its eating habits, its school lunch, and its public health picture is found in the towns and cities across America.    Jamie's show uncovers some of the shocking realities of school lunch, like french fries counting as a serving of vegetables.  It also puts a face to the "obesity epidemic" by featuring residents whose lives have been severely impacted by obesity. 

Jamie (and viewers) may not realize that there is a long standing grass roots food movement in America, one arm aimed directly at improving school lunch.  He might have a better chance of success if he calls on the expertise of people like Ann Cooper, the Renegade Lunch Lady, and Chef Greg Christian of Chicago's Organic School Project.

My hope is that the show will get more people involved in ongoing projects to improve school food or to start their own project.  A starting point may be to find out about a school's (federally mandated) wellness policy.

Sustainable Nutrition Bottom-line:  Kids do spend a large amount of time at school and the food served there has a dramatic impact on their overall diet quality.  School lunch funding is not adequate to serve quality meals.  The federal Childhood Nutrition Act, which regulates the school food spending, is being reauthorized and so this is an important opportunity for change.  Let your congress people know you support healthier food in schools. Learn more at Slow Food USA's campaign for good food in schools website: Time for Lunch.