Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

L.A. Schools' Healthful Lunch Menu Panned By Students [Meals Rejected "En Masse"!]
LATimes ^ | December 17, 2011 | Teresa Watanabe,

Posted on 12/17/2011 8:33:29 PM PST by Steelfish

L.A. Schools' Healthful Lunch Menu Panned By Students For many students, Los Angeles Unified's introduction of healthful lunches — part of a campaign against obesity, diabetes and other problems — has been a flop. The district says the menu will be revised.

By Teresa Watanabe December 17, 2011 It's lunchtime at Van Nuys High School and students stream into the cafeteria to check out the day's fare: black bean burgers, tostada salad, fresh pears and other items on a new healthful menu introduced this year by the Los Angeles Unified School District.

But Iraides Renteria and Mayra Gutierrez don't even bother to line up. Iraides said the school food previously made her throw up, and Mayra calls it "nasty, rotty stuff." So what do they eat? The juniors pull three bags of Flamin' Hot Cheetos and soda from their backpacks.

"This is our daily lunch," Iraides says. "We're eating more junk food now than last year."

For many students, L.A. Unified's trailblazing introduction of healthful school lunches has been a flop. Earlier this year, the district got rid of chocolate and strawberry milk, chicken nuggets, corn dogs, nachos and other food high in fat, sugar and sodium. Instead, district chefs concocted such healthful alternatives as vegetarian curries and tamales, quinoa salads and pad Thai noodles.

There's just one problem: Many of the meals are being rejected en masse. Participation in the school lunch program has dropped by thousands of students. Principals report massive waste, with unopened milk cartons and uneaten entrees being thrown away. Students are ditching lunch, and some say they're suffering from headaches, stomach pains and even anemia. At many campuses, an underground market for chips, candy, fast-food burgers and other taboo fare is thriving.

(Excerpt) Read more at latimes.com ...


TOPICS: Culture/Society; News/Current Events; US: California
KEYWORDS: education; foodnazis; foodpolice; lausd; nannystate; publiceducation; publicschools; schools
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-6061-80 ... 101-103 next last
To: Steelfish

And yet the food is a hundred times better then any so-called education they’re getting.


21 posted on 12/17/2011 8:54:27 PM PST by Bullish (Recovery won't begin until Obama loses HIS job.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Montanabound

Yeah, the “Get OJ Off Lawyer” middle school... you’d think even that community would have a better sense of propriety.


22 posted on 12/17/2011 8:56:59 PM PST by HiTech RedNeck (Sometimes progressives find their scripture in the penumbra of sacred bathroom stall writings (Tzar))
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 20 | View Replies]

To: Steelfish

I thought this was interesting:

“Andre Jahchan, a 16-year-old sophomore at Esteban Torres High School, said the food was “super good” at the summer tasting at L.A. Unified’s central kitchen. But on campus, he said, the chicken pozole was watery, the vegetable tamale was burned and hard, and noodles were soggy.”

Preparation may well be as much of a problem as the dishes themselves. It could also be that the “super good” dishes at the summer testing used better ingredients and had fewer cost constraints than the actual school kitchens. “Fresh” ingredients cost more than institutional-grade mystery meat, so it’s not impossible the schools are cutting corners on the recipes in order to keep the food costs low.


23 posted on 12/17/2011 8:58:06 PM PST by DemforBush (A Repo man is *always* intense!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Steelfish
do I really have to say it???

24 posted on 12/17/2011 9:03:50 PM PST by Chode (American Hedonist - *DTOM* -ww- NO Pity for the LAZY)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Steelfish

The real truth is the high crab diet is 100% poison for the cardiovascular system as well as messing with your insulin levels. If people were really serious about health they would read up on the paleolithic diet.


25 posted on 12/17/2011 9:03:54 PM PST by LukeL (Barack Obama: Jimmy Carter 2 Electric Boogaloo)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Steelfish
So what do they eat? The juniors pull three bags of Flamin' Hot Cheetos and soda from their backpacks.

But...but...they told me that free school lunches were absolutely necessary to avert starvation for "the poor."

26 posted on 12/17/2011 9:07:26 PM PST by denydenydeny (The more a system is all about equality in theory the more it's an aristocracy in practice.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Jack Hydrazine

27 posted on 12/17/2011 9:07:57 PM PST by kcvl
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 10 | View Replies]

To: Steelfish

Its time for the Obama administration to introduce the little darlings to Soylent Green.


28 posted on 12/17/2011 9:13:49 PM PST by Avid Coug
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Jack Hydrazine
Yeah, it's a spicy (usually) vegetarian patty made with black beans that's served up as a meatless alternative to hamburgers. Done right, they actually aren't too bad. Done badly, it's like eating dried out succotash. In either case, you'll never mistake it for the juicy goodness of actual ground beef. I look at it a lot like eating falafel (which I also like) rather than anything remotely resembling an actual hamburger.


29 posted on 12/17/2011 9:14:10 PM PST by DemforBush (A Repo man is *always* intense!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 10 | View Replies]

To: txhurl

I went to high school in the late 60’s. The jocks all ate three or four cheeseburgers for lunch washed down with a milkshake. Only kids who had money ate in the cafeteria, kids like me either brought lunch or ordered a shake for lunch and that was it.
Back then buying food at school was a luxury.


30 posted on 12/17/2011 9:16:54 PM PST by antceecee (Bless us Father.. have mercy on us and protect us from evil.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 17 | View Replies]

To: kcvl
What is this unidentifiable patty? It looks positively ghastly! Bring on the junk food — at least I know what I'm getting.
31 posted on 12/17/2011 9:25:51 PM PST by MasterGunner01 (11)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 27 | View Replies]

To: Steelfish
"Shut up kid and eat your peas!!!"

The kids better enjoy this variety while they can. During a second Obama term, the standard school meal is going to be a watered down version of gruel three times a day.

32 posted on 12/17/2011 9:28:35 PM PST by FlingWingFlyer (Stop BIG Government Greed Now!!!!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: ODC-GIRL

IIRC, he did one in the south.


33 posted on 12/17/2011 9:32:57 PM PST by matt04
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 16 | View Replies]

To: Steelfish

Under pressure from parents, our school district has been modifying the lunchroom offerings. Our son is a high school swimmer, and he has been complaining that the new menu is so low in fat, carbs and calories that the lunches leave him hungry. I’ve already written a complaint to the food service director. She said she was grateful for my input, since she’s under huge pressure from the healthy eating crowd, and she understands that kids need more than sticks and twigs for sustenance. It’s really nutty out there these days.


34 posted on 12/17/2011 9:34:45 PM PST by Think free or die
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Steelfish

Whatever happened to plain old sandwiches served on healthy bread?


35 posted on 12/17/2011 9:34:52 PM PST by Exit148
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: LukeL

high crab diet?

are you eating it? you sound crabby!


36 posted on 12/17/2011 9:37:49 PM PST by HiTech RedNeck (Sometimes progressives find their scripture in the penumbra of sacred bathroom stall writings (Tzar))
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 25 | View Replies]

To: DemforBush

Nobody’s doing endurance testing of the stuff under the warming lamps.


37 posted on 12/17/2011 9:39:11 PM PST by HiTech RedNeck (Sometimes progressives find their scripture in the penumbra of sacred bathroom stall writings (Tzar))
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 23 | View Replies]

To: Avid Coug

Chocolate chip chive cookie?


38 posted on 12/17/2011 9:40:21 PM PST by HiTech RedNeck (Sometimes progressives find their scripture in the penumbra of sacred bathroom stall writings (Tzar))
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 28 | View Replies]

To: kcvl

Is that a snail shell at the bottom of the one on the right?


39 posted on 12/17/2011 9:44:49 PM PST by FlingWingFlyer (Stop BIG Government Greed Now!!!!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 27 | View Replies]

To: Steelfish

Whole wheat crust, low-fat cheese and low-sodium sauce, Pizza...MMmmmm ...Mmmmm!


40 posted on 12/17/2011 9:46:49 PM PST by mylife (The Roar Of The Masses Could Be Farts)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-6061-80 ... 101-103 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson