Hi All,
Parents from Healthy Schools Culver City spoke at the Culver City Unified School District board meeting in support of two requests:
1. publishing the nutritional information for the current menu items
2. creating a working group to explore options for improving the food service program
I drafted talking points which are attached for your information.
Julie Garcia, food service director, spoke defending her current program as "meeting the standards" and citing cost and contractual obligations to a multi-district buying cooperative as barriers to bringing in organic or farmers market produce - two options that parents discussed.
The board has asked district staff to prepare a report on the nutritional content of the current food service program and to meet with parents following the completion of this report. Board Member Kathy Paspalis said she felt that merely meeting the standards was not good enough and we should be aiming higher than that. I use the analogy that meeting the standards was like aiming for a C grade. We should be aiming for As because we are an A district in so many ways and we should have an A meal program as well.
I'm encouraged that the board was supportive of our request and I plan to follow-up with members and with Julie to ensure that the nutritional report is completed as soon as possible (we asked originally 9 months ago!) and to lay out some suggestions for next steps. I am beginning intensive out reach to Ann Cooper (Renegade Lunch Lady), Congresswoman Diane Watson, Compton and Santa Monica School Districts (who have organic produce components to their programs), local chefs and others to try to find local, cost-effective, kid-approved, successful models. I welcome any additional leads you have to offer.
