Bay Area School District is the First Ever to Serve Kids All-Organic, Non-GMO Lunches
By Sarah Lesnar
A Bay Area school district now serves as the shining example of how to feed and educate their students by providing 100% organic and GMO-free menu items, all of which are made from scratch.
Around 500 students that attend the Bayside MLK Jr. Academy and the Willow Academy in Sausalito have been dining on organic, local and sustainably-sourced food since the beginning of the school year in August.
The Sausalito Marin City School District partnered with The Conscious Kitchen, an educational project launched by the non-profit organization Turning Green.
Turning Green founder Judi Shils praised the project:
“Students everywhere are vulnerable to pesticide residues and unsafe environmental toxins. Not only does this program far exceed USDA nutritional standards, but it ties the health of our children to the health of our planet. It’s the first program to say that fundamentally, you cannot have one without the other.”
Aside from the food, the children are also given nutrition and gardening lessons, so while they eat healthy in school, they can learn how to live eco-friendly and healthy at home too.
The Conscious Kitchen initially launched their project in August 2013 on 156 children at Bayside MLK Jr. Academy. School officials noted that disciplinary cases decreased while school attendance increased over the two years since the launch.
Justin Everett, the consulting chef with The Conscious Kitchen, explained:
“Most people don’t realize that GMOs are everywhere, especially in processed foods.
“By embracing fresh, local, organic, non-GMO food, this program successfully disrupts the cycle of unhealthy, pre-packaged, heat and serve meals that dominate school kitchens.”
h/t: ABC News
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