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[Kamak]

(I'm strictly speaking of the US here; I don't know how this subject would be handled in other countries)

Interestingly, in my country it's not common for the school to provide lunch for the students. Students bring their own lunch from home, usually sandwiches/bread.

Here, schools are required to provide enough food for every child in attendance to have breakfast and lunch. Often kids have to pay for the meals (or parents have the option to pay online and get a discount, or of course pack their kids a lunch). This is because there is no guarantee that kids have food at their houses when they leave school because parents' work schedules and poverty. For many, breakfast and lunch at school is all they get to eat. and many times weekends, holidays, and summer vacation are especially hard on the kids and their families because of it.

So schools have to balance not only sustainability for all the food on stock for 200-2000+ students 2 meals a day, 5 days a week, but they also have to balance how these meals fit nutritionally into the lives of students who solely depend on them, sometimes meaning higher calorie content that affects all students, not just those more dependent on them.

It's kind of difficult to manage and a lot of people seem to treat it like "salad will save the world" or do stupid things like "we have a taco truck with kale. Isn't that trendy and health conscious?"

[Syobon]

This is because there is no guarantee that kids have food at their houses when they leave school because parents' work schedules and poverty.

Understandable, here that's thought to be covered by social security and also kids have to be fed when school's on break regardless.

[Kamak]

This is because there is no guarantee that kids have food at their houses when they leave school because parents' work schedules and poverty.

Understandable, here that's thought to be covered by social security and also kids have to be fed when school's on break regardless.

social security is already a contentious mess at this point, so IDK.

As for children being fed on breaks, while it's required, that doesn't mean the food is nutritional or plentiful in comparison to school meals. That's why the burden to feed children enough for them to grow is placed on the school system. Also, a lot of parents enroll their kids in summer programs to ensure they get fed during the summer too, especially if they can't be home to ensure they eat.

[Syobon]

social security is already a contentious mess at this point, so IDK.

Yeah obviously I'm not saying the US can instantly copy another country's system and all problems will go away, it unfortunately doesn't work like that. I just think making the comparison is interesting.

As for children being fed on breaks, while it's required, that doesn't mean the food is nutritional or plentiful in comparison to school meals. That's why the burden to feed children enough for them to grow is placed on the school system.

I disagree, it's the parent's foremost' responsibility to raise their kids to the best of their abilities, including nutrition. In fact, that is the most base and primal of a parent's responsibility since the dawn of time. Without the parents' cooperation, raising a kid properly is downright impossible.

[Myk]

kids can eat anything and be healthy, they're kids, they have ungodly metabolism that can take whatever food is shoved into their throat and turn it into gains and energies

its their choice whether or not they want to do anything with the food in their gut; leave it to waste and become fat, or get active and turn it into energy and muscle

food choice is not nearly as important as a kid than those over the age of 21ish

below 20's id say exercise is more important than food, after 20 food becomes just as important, if not more.

[Kamak]

The expectation for parents is there, but the reality is that the school needs to be there for a foundation for many kids, regardless of whether the parents are neglecting them or not. With households that have two working parents or single-parent homes, it's hard for parents to even have the time much less the cheddar. Food banks/stamps/supplementary programs only go so far, and jobs expect a lot of things from people, including personal transportation (cars, gas, insurance, maintenance), communication (phones, email, internet) and stuff that takes up cheddar to ensure there's even SOME cheddar for food to put on the table. Some households can only stay afloat on food because school provides 2 meals a day, which is why breaks from school are harder on them.

This is not even getting into bad parenting with kids that ARE being neglected nutritionally that requires the school to make up for it even if no one knows what's happening at home.

kids can eat anything and be healthy, they're kids, they have ungodly metabolism that can take whatever food is shoved into their throat and turn it into gains and energies

its their choice whether or not they want to do anything with the food in their gut; leave it to waste and become fat, or get active and turn it into energy and muscle

food choice is not nearly as important as a kid than those over the age of 21ish

below 20's id say exercise is more important than food, after 20 food becomes just as important, if not more.

Ehh, within reason, yes. The problem is that dietary preferences form even while in the womb and continue to form in the early years. If someone grows up with an unhealthy diet they're unlikely to break from it without heavy intervention and shifts in lifestyle. That's why it's important that kids eat well growing up. However, the most important thing is that they're eating at all.

[SaintCrazy]

I do wish there were more programs in place that helped educate the parents, though. Here in the US I feel like there's a certain mentality of "oh well the parents should be teaching that" that keeps a lot of good school programs from being expanded, like sex ed and nutrition and other "life skills"-type programs. Except there's no way to guarantee that a kid is going to get any sort of guidance or support from their parents, especially lower SES kids whose parents are too busy with work, or aren't educated enough to know (or care) how to raise their kids.

Not everyone has access to stuff like community parenting classes, not to mention the (sadly) significant percentage of parents who just don't care about their kids for whatever reason.

[Rinoko]

There was this really cute girl at the drive-thru today and she had a fucking sick tattoo and I think cute tattooed girls are my weakness.

[Alkarii]

There was this really cute girl at the drive-thru today and she had a fucking sick tattoo and I think cute tattooed girls are my weakness.

I know what you mean. There's been a few times when I've found a reason to be somewhere to get another look at a cute girl with tattoos. If I saw one playing bass (not the fish), I'd probably melt like a popsicle on the sidewalk in the summer sun.

[NaraStrex]

The thing is if the healthy stuff doesn't taste good its just thrown away. My neighbor was my lunchlady in highschool so we actually talked a few times about this. When Obama first came in office Michel Obama pushed a bill to fund more health food in schools, but the senate wouldnt let it through unless it went to certain companies that mass produced foods so they would get more bang for their buck. Of course this is a waste since vegetable mush gets eaten just as much when its on the menu than when its not. I mean how good can mass produced frozen produce shipped halfway across a country in a box then reheated tastes?

My neighbor and i agreed its not about forcing children to pick from various "healthy" foods but just giving a few appealing options that are actually healthy.

[Blitz Walrus]

Preschools around here do just that, they give the kids a wide selection of foods and are encouraged to make the healthiest choices.

[TheStranger]

I remember school lunches from when I was a kid, its free for all students in Sweden, and the food itself was fairly healthy, if still mass produced in communal kitchens, but I NEVER ate vegetables if I could avoid it. They had salad and stuff that you could pick, and I dont think I had any in all my 9 years of school.

[Kamak]

Honestly, I don't think schools should bother pushing bitter greens on younger children and should focus more on getting them to like fruits, given that a child's taste is more geared towards the sweet flavors. We used to do that in schools all the time around here, having more focus on apples, and grapes, and bananas as sides rather than broccoli and salad. We used to even have parties where we'd eat apples and watermelon as treats, and it was nice to have something like that.

Fruit seems to be ignored for health benefits because of the sugar content, and while that is a concern, the fact that the sugars are even more healthy and easy on the body to metabolize should be remembered as well.

Rather than forcing kids to enjoy bitter things when their brains are telling them not to eat it, let them develop their taste gradually. Kids do not need to eat like little adults even if people want to treat them that way. They need to eat like kids.

[Riku]

Yeah, I was going to say, non-certified "nutrition experts" seem to forget that even though sweet apples and bananas might have a lot more sugar than virtually all vegetables, They're still approximately 500% more nutrition per calorie than cookies and a Snickers bar. Plus, you teach kids how to eat ranch dressing in moderation/small amounts, they will eat all the raw carrots you can throw at them, since carrots are also mildly sweet. Broccoli is a little tougher (especially if it has a lot of stem), and celery can be difficult because of the strings, but carrots are motherfuckin' easy mode.

[Kamak]

Carrots and potatoes are the easiest veggies to get into because of their sugar and starch content.

I never ate carrots with ranch as a kid outside of the dip at thanksgiving. I usually just ate them plain or dipped them in peanut butter.

I used to also enjoy carrot PB sandwiches, which is something I would encourage people to try giving children because it's great without them tanking up on the fats that can be found in PB (especially processed PB)