I don’t know about you, but when I was in school, the lunch items available consisted of 100% processed, refined foods such as pizza pops, ichiban-style noodles and hot dogs — stuff that was bad enough to make my parents spend the extra time preparing a homemade lunch the night before.
Celebrity chef Jamie Oliver has taken it upon himself to rid the British school system of unhealthy food choices, one school at a time. In 2005, Oliver signed up for lunchroom duty at Kidbrooke School in Greenwich and, armed with alarming facts regarding the obesity levels of kids and teenagers, started teaching parents about the rubbish that is served in schools through the medium of television.
His stint at Kidbrooke got off to a rough start when, after banning junk food from the school, the students boycotted Oliver’s new menu. Oliver also had to contend with budget restrictions, which allowed him to only spend around 65¢ USD per child. Additionally, implementing healthy food preparation increased the workload of the already hardworking people in the lunch room.
Nonetheless, Oliver won over parents, lunchroom employees, and even the kids, who were unimpressed when he showed them exactly what went into those chicken nuggets they ate on a frequent basis. He has also raised awareness in the British Government, who have taken measures to improve nutrition in schools, including banning certain foods from the school system.
School Dinners has returned to channel 4 in the UK. Check your local TV listings to see if you get it too!
Author by Martha Edwards
