International celebrity chef Jamie Oliver, aka the "Naked Chef", is the most recognized face when it comes to advocating for healthier food in American schools. He began his "food revolution" in the UK and has now worked his way to the US. He won the TED (Technology Entertainment and Design) prize in 2010 for his campaigns to "create change on both the individual and governmental level," and to "bring attention to the changes Englanders and now Americans need to make in their lifestyles and diet."
Recently, Oliver has been known in the US for his Emmy award-winning t.v. series "Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution."
The only sad part about Jamie Oliver's American food revolution, is that a British man is leading it. In my opinion, its a little pathetic that we have to rely on a person from another country to help get our act together regarding food consumption among the American people. We undoubtedly have the capacity to do it, but so far the only person who has stepped up to the plate isn't even American himself. I have the utmost respect for Jamie Oliver and the change he is making, and its inspiring to know that people outside of America care enough to want to make a change and help us out.
The percentage of children and adolescents who are defined as overweight has more than doubled since the early 1970's. Nearly 2/3 of American adults are overweight, and a 1/3 of Americans are considered obese. Two thirds of America is overweight!!
Clearly, something HAS to be done. Schools, where the government can control children's food intake, is an excellent place to begin.
Regarding Aragon, I honestly am a little in the dark about our school lunch program because I bring my own every day. Do you think Aragon's school lunch program needs improvement? What/how would you change it?
Come on America, lets join together and get this food revolution going above and beyond this wonderful British lad!
Should the government regulate junk food in schools, or should children be allowed to choose what they eat? Is putting regulations on school lunches a strategic place to begin improving this country's obesity problem? I say yes, but let me know what you think!
8 comments:
Haha, I'm glad you posted this article. I've been following Oliver's show for a while now and so far it's been both really interesting and inspirational how dedicated he is towards improving nutritional standards in the school system. As for Aragon, I would definitely we could improve in terms of the types of foods we offer. Most of the food served at Aragon is just reheated and then served to students. The menu items in general are probably loaded with loads of preservatives and fats as well. From watching Oliver's show and observing the types of food offered at our own school, we definitely could use more fresh foods and variety. However, this would be quite difficult to implement as it would take quite a bit of money to start up. Do you guys have any ideas as to how we could make some changes?
As a kind of interesting tidbit, I've also been following this blog written by a school teacher who has made a commitment to anonymously document and eat the lunches offered by her school for a whole year. Here's the link if you're interested: http://fedupwithschoollunch.blogspot.com/
I got very excited to see this blog as I've loved Jamie Oliver for a while (my mom has a lot of his cookbooks) and I love his show! I think it's amazing what he's doing and it seems such a simple and obvious idea. He targets the "fattest city in America" first, and I really appreciate the way he goes about doing it; not only does he go in with his own ideas and plan, but he really makes sure to get all the townspeople involved and works tirelessly to do so. I found both his work and this attitude of never giving up very inspirational.
The other thing I like about Jamie Oliver is he knows what he's doing. Having been a professional chef for some time, he knows that you can't just give kids vegetables and expect them to eat it. He really seems to know that you have to make something healthy AND delicious that kids will want to eat.
You pointed out how he's a brit and how Americans should be leading it. I agree with you to some extent, but I also feel that it shouldn't matter who is doing it. I feel like both England and the US need to eat more healthily, and whoever can help these countries achieve this goal shouldn't be criticized for their country of origin.
I think you're right, it would be nice to see an American leading other Americans to a more healthy lifestyle, and that people do get touchy about an "outside" trying to tell them how to live their lives, but I think as long as you have the resources, the motivation, and the passion (all of which Jamie has) then you can be forgiven for being a brit.
I think all schools across the country need to reform their school lunch programs, including Aragon. I don't usually buy lunch either, but I think we should have healthier, yet delicious options. I think one of the biggest issues, however, with school lunch reform, is cost. I think many people think (and in most cases they are right) that processed foods are cheaper than organic and healthy ones. However, www.school-lunch.org describes one situation where a professional chef (much like Jamie Oliver) has created gourmet, totally unprocessed meals for students that cost about $3.84 for breakfast, lunch, snacks, and beverages. This sounds really good, however the portions may be quite little, as $3.84 at least to me sounds very very cheap. This information can be found at http://www.school-lunch.org/obesity.html.
Thank you so much Danielle for posting this blog, because I really love this topic as well as movements like that of Jamie Oliver. It's interesting to hear about the many different ways people are approaching America's obesity problem and the many different reactions to these proposed solutions.
I don't really mind that he is British calling his show an "American Food Change". At least there is someone out there, who helped his country and is trying his very best to help us. With his guidance, maybe we can slow change our eating habits, but we can't rely on him to help us until we are fully healthy, so maybe the U.S should be aware of that, if any schools have changed their food menu at any fixed schools.
And as for Aragon, yes I do think our menu should change. Even some of my friends who choose to eat the "healthier" food still find it uneatable . Add more fruits and vegetables in a creative way that may entice students to eat better. Or provide a small amount of money that the school can give students a pre made lunch that is similar to a lunch that is brought from home- it's probably a little more cheaper buying fresh food than all this stuff that's prepackaged...
I think that it's great that someone is taking action for a healthier America. Even if he is not American, like myself, I think he is taking a great step towards a better future for this country. I don't find it hard to believe that any American hasn't started anything like Oliver because as Danielle posted on the blog, 2/3 of Americans are overweight; therefore, I assume that they either don't really care about their health or they just decided to give up and continue with their unhealthy choices because they might think that a change in them will never occur. I think that if Americans would have a positive attitude and ATTEMPT to make a change, starting with themselves, then a change can occur in them and therefore spread throughout the nation, but the change has to start with that person in order for it to move forward and in order for the nation to make a 180 spin and become a nation known for its healthy and active inhabitants!! :)
Sorry, just to be clear, "ALICE" = Alice Bebbington!
Post a Comment