A friend of mine, who works in the Department of Education here in NYC, sent me a copy of this memo that hit his inbox this morning:
“Mayor Bloomberg AND WHOLE FOODS MARKET OPEN NEW STORE AND ANNOUNCE donation of 57 salad bars to City Public Schools AS PART OF CITY’S NEW PLAN TO INSTALL SALAD BARS IN ALL SCHOOLS” (emphasis theirs)“Task Force Will Bring Salad Bars To All Schools by 2015; More Than 1,000 Already in Place City’s Bold Initiatives Have Driven Progress on Childhood Obesity
Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, Health Commissioner Dr. Thomas A. Farley, Food Policy Coordinator Kim Kessler and Community Affairs Commissioner Nazli Parvizi today joined Whole Foods Market and their Whole Kids Foundation as they celebrated the opening of their new East 57th Street store located at 226 East 57th Street by donating 57 salad bars, valued at more than $300,000, to New York City public elementary schools… Increasing access to fresh fruits and vegetables help children develop food preferences and the new salad bars will give thousands of children exposure to fresh produce, helping them learn to make healthy choices for life. The Mayor”
But how do you get the kids to choose and EAT the salads?
Here are 5 tips on making salads more appealing to the kids once the salad bars are in place:
1. Put Salad Bar FIRST:
Studies show that putting the salad bar at the front of the line, BEFORE the a la carte fast food-like options, gets kids to choose more salads. Easy.
2. BYOS: Build Your Own Salad
Let kids pick the lettuce, protein and fruit/vegetable combination for an exciting custom salad.3. Half-Size Combos
Offer meal deals by featuring half-size portions of salads, soups, entrees and sandwiches.
4. Menu-Board It
Post salad specials on a menu board at the front of the line, giving salads equal status with hot entrees.5. Seasonal Greetings
Alternate salad ingredients to include seasonal produce.
Let kids pick the lettuce, protein and fruit/vegetable combination for an exciting custom salad.3. Half-Size Combos
Offer meal deals by featuring half-size portions of salads, soups, entrees and sandwiches.
4. Menu-Board It
Post salad specials on a menu board at the front of the line, giving salads equal status with hot entrees.5. Seasonal Greetings
Alternate salad ingredients to include seasonal produce.
Do you have a tip that gets kids to eat healthy?
Leave a comment below, or Click Here To Tweet this post to share the ideas with others!
Healthy soups loaded with veggies, grains and/or beans is a great way to get kids to eat healthy. My kids always loved soups.