Increasing Children’s Access to Healthy Food

photo attribution: Revolution Foods

This post is sponsored by Revolution Foods. Opinions are my own.

Access to healthy foods is one of the biggest barriers to getting kids to engage in lifelong healthy eating habits. In my previous job as a pediatric dietitian at Boston Medical Center I saw the need for increased access to healthy foods each and every day. Whether it was at home or in the classroom , many of the patients I worked with did not have access to a variety of healthy, affordable foods they needed to sustain healthy eating habits.

Schools provide one great resource to increase children’s access to healthy foods. In my experience one barrier to student’s participation in the school meal program is due to the dislike of food options. They are either not familiar with them or they don’t like the taste.

photo attribution: Revolution Foods

One company, Revolution Foods, is leading the charge to transform the way America eats by providing access to healthy, culturally inspired and kid-approved meals to students and families throughout the country, including right here in the Greater Boston Area. This is so important because proper nourishment is essential for our youth to help them fulfill their academic potential. I’m so glad to know Revolution Foods serves all students in Boston Public Schools nutritious meals that are bursting with flavor.

Since becoming the healthy school meals provider for Boston Public Schools and select Charter schools in the Fall of 2017, Revolution Foods has:

1.Served 5.3 million chef-crafted, kid-inspired healthy meals to students in the Boston area.

2.Expanded capacity to produce more than 750,000 meals per week and streamlined operations to enable a wider selection of fresh local and regional produce, high quality proteins and rBST-free dairy products in school meals.

3.Introduced culturally relevant menu items to Boston schools, including bean and cheese pupusas, sweet potato-crusted fish sandwiches, chicken drumsticks with rice and collard greens, and more.

4.Partnered with local organizations, including Food Corps, CommonWealth Kitchen, and Cooking Matters, to implement nutrition education programs, monthly vegetable tastings and cooking workshops for students and families.

5.Created over 80 new jobs in the Boston community.

Revolution Foods remains committed to increasing capacity in order to serve an even larger set of schools in the region in the future.

Healthy habits must start both at home and at school because proper nutrition gives our youth, including ours right here in the Greater Boston area, the nourishment they need to lead successful lives. . Revolution Foods is paving the way by remaining committed to providing equitable access to great tasting, nutritious meals to all Boston Public School students.

Revolution Foods is the only company on a national level to offer a clean label supply chain, which enables the company to provide a great balance of real foods and composition of nutritious, high quality meals that are chef-crafted and kid-inspired. Its meals are prepared fresh daily, minimally processed and refrigerated. Each meal is made of high quality, all natural ingredients and are free from artificial ingredients, colors, flavors or sweeteners and contain no high fructose corn syrup. Not only do kids find the meals delicious, but parents and administrators also appreciate the clean label and real food ingredients, as well as the health and academic outcomes they foster.

So how can you as a parent help ensure that your child is getting access to healthy foods when at home to support your child’s healthy eating habits?

1. Stock your pantry and fridge with a variety of foods and make sure they are easily accessible. For example, stock your fridge with fresh fruit and veggies. Make sure to have them washed and cut up so when your kids are hungry they are ready to eat! Or keep whole fruits on the counter for easy access.
2. Make sure to plan consistent snack and meal times for when your children are home. When kids know they are going to be fed they eat better.
3. Make sure to offer a variety of different foods at mealtime and switch up the snack options from time to time.  Variety is key for health and helps keep kids interested in trying new foods.