Serving healthy foods in schools is a growing national trend. But is there enough organic and local food available to supply all of the schools?
Serving healthy foods in schools is a growing national trend. But is there enough organic and local food available to supply all of the schools?
ENN's Jerry Kay and Katrina Rill spoke to Anupama Joshi, Program Manager for the Center for Food and Justice. The National Food to School Program is a project of the center. They also spoke with Marion Nestle, professor at the Nutrition, Food Studies, and Public Health department at New York University and food-policy expert.
Listen to EarthNews Radio: National Farm to School Program.
Joshi said that organic and local food programs are being approached differently; they're being spearheaded by foodservice directors rather than parents or farmers.
But Nestle says that there may not be enough food being grown to meet demand that would be create if school districts began buying organic food. However, if there is a school-by-school approach taken, connections can be made between the growers and the schools.
Only about 10% of all food consumed in the US is organic. However, organic food is the only sector in agriculture that is currently growing.
Kay and Rill also spoke to Nestle about the growing American waistline and the continued marketability of junk food. You can hear that interview here:
Listen to EarthNews Radio: Junk Food and Our Waistlines.
You can learn more about the National Farm to School Program at the organization's website here:www.farmtoschool.org.
And you can read more about Marion Nestle's views and research about food issues here:School Food, Public Policy, and Strategies for Change.
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