Peace, Love and School Lunch! That groovy statement is the theme of this year’s National School Lunch Week, which is taking place from Monday, Oct. 10 through Friday, Oct. 14.
Even President Joe Biden is spreading the good vibes. Leading up to this annual observance, he passed a national proclamation in honor of the school lunch program.
“School meals remain a vital lifeline, supplying well-balanced, free or low-cost meals to kids across the country since the program began in 1946,” the president proclaimed. “Studies show these are often the most nutritious — and sometimes the only — meals in a student’s day. They improve student health, making it easier for students to learn, and erode inequity while also advancing our fight against childhood obesity.”
National School Lunch Week has been promoting the importance of healthy meals for students between classes since being instituted in 1962 by President John F. Kennedy. Schools serve nearly 30 million children nationwide every school day, helping to reduce childhood hunger and supporting American agriculture.
Closer to home, Canyons School District’s hard-working lunch workers serve an average of 17,000 school lunches per day — and that’s despite a major labor shortage.
More Canyons District school-lunch facts:
- During the 2021-2022 school year, we provided 2.9 million lunches along with nearly 850,000 breakfasts.
- We offer five components in every lunch: fruit, vegetable, grain, milk, protein.
- Nutrition Services allocates more than $3 million dollars to buy fresh produce.
- We know what menu choices students want and make them better and healthier.
- Popular entrees feature this year include: orange chicken, breakfast for lunch, cherry blossom chicken, walking tacos, and homemade mac and cheese.
- In 2020-2021, more than 17,000 Canyons students participated in school lunch.
“We are still experiencing a major labor shortage, yet we have been able to provide lunch every school day,” noted Canyons District Nutrition Services Director Sebasthian Varas. “Be sure to thank a lunch worker!”
