Education and health: organic school canteen
"If our goal is to educate first, we need to educate in all areas, and dining is an important part as well as teaching habits taught to value the products and healthy organic" David Beltran, director of the school Pienc Fort de Barcelona.
The goal of this institution is very ambitious, given that in recent years rates of obesity have skyrocketed among Spanish children, while that have been lost healthy eating habits. Multiply fried and manufactured goods to the detriment of boiled, vegetables and fresh fruits. "There are parents who think that if their children eat well at noon they can dinner pizza or anything,".
The menu for these eco-schools contains dishes like creamed leeks with spirals, brown rice with tomato sauce, vegetable omelet, chorizo with chickpeas, lentils with rice. Although few, some schools opt offering their students the best food, with no hormones, no pesticides or additives. Some colleges begin slowly introducing the vegetables, fruits and other organic products on their menus. Other sites have changed the conventional businesses catering to other concerns which go beyond the diet: to guarantee the highest quality at the table at once that local production.
So, say "there are many children who have discovered the bread in school because they eat every Friday, or vegetables such as peppers or spinach, which rarely eat at home." in the center of Barcelona 90% of the 376 students up to 9 years eats. The association of parents of students (AMPA) is directly involved in the choice of company had to take care of the dining room. The first year was awarded to a large company in the industry, as almost all schools. Then changed philosophy. This school is one of the thirteen (twelve public and one private kindergarten) who works with the Future Foundation, an entity whose primary purpose is the employment of people with difficulties and it has achieved through the restoration and thus promoting responsible and sustainable food, both for food and catering businesses in school canteens in menus for those who serve more than 3,500 children. "Between 70 and 80% of the foods we use are organic," says Isabel Coderch, head of the school meals project sustainable Future Foundation. Coderch recognizes that the educational aspect is very important in this field.
In Catalonia, other schools, especially those located in rural settings, gradually introduced organic products, normally produced in their immediate surroundings. Most schools, institutions and organizations involved have been the Bureau of Labor School Food Environment to promote this type of food. "Three years ago, hardly anyone was involved, and now there is more interested schools" says Neus Garriga, project coordinator of food sovereignty Entrepobles. This project makes special emphasis on the importance of the rural world, the development of short distribution and healthy eating. "School canteens are an effectively implement our principles because of the children come to teachers and families, " maintains Garriga.
Source: S. Sans – The Vanguardia.es / Ecoalimenta.com