On the heels of National School Lunch Week, The Star spoke with Arnisha Jordan, the director of ASFA's Child Nutrition Program, to discuss CNP's plans for years to come. Overall, one of the biggest goals is to be more inclusive with the lunch menu.
“We're working to make our meals more inclusive so that everyone feels like they have a place here, and at minimum, they're going to have at least one thing that they enjoy," Jordan said. “My vision is to create a space that is inviting and feels warm and all of our customers: students, parents, teachers, [and] visitors... They feel welcome there looking forward to our little show back here.”
To help build on that inclusivity, Kim Harrison, manager of child nutrition, stated that over the summer she had gone to the Birmingham Islamic Society and spoke to them about what Muslims could or couldn't eat and started incorporating it into the lunch menu. “I think vegetarians should eat what they want to eat,” Harrison stated. “If it was me, I would want the same options that everyone else had.”
Jordan added on to this statement by saying, “I want our menus to be inclusive, so we've started to offer halal products."
The CNP is also working to make dorm students also feel more included. “I want everyone to feel invited and feel seen. Especially our dorm kids. They're not getting to leave on a daily basis and I want their meals to be a little different from breakfast and lunch.”
For breakfast and lunch, there are restrictions to how much sodium, sugar, and things of that nature that can be in the school lunch. "We don't have to abide by those restrictions in the evenings so I want the kids and the dorm to look forward to getting a little more of a hearty meal," Jordan said. "Something that's closer to what they would get at home."
You can play a part in making the school lunch more inclusive as well. With the new additions of the meal surveys and the QR code, you can let the kitchen staff know your opinions, improving their food for the entire community.
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