Hot Tips & Tricks to Get Kids Excited to Eat! Use Your Words To Reframe & Refocus The Future: Immersive & Interactive Environments Powered By Embracing Trends AT ANY STAGE
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Trends require one thing, movement. Some trends may send people backwards (hello, tiktok trends) but most propel us forward into something new. That’s the thing about trends, they move fast and it can feel daunting to try to keep up with every new idea that comes flying in our direction. The reason? Not every trend is meant for every person, and that’s okay. But what happens if we resist all trends? WE.STOP.MOVING. Stop growing. Stop challenging ourselves. This lack of movement seems nice at first, but one day we wake up and realize the people around us have shot so far ahead of us that we are no longer speaking the same language. This is true of so many of life’s challenges... our kids (teenage years, eek), technology, our friends, our careers, etc... Each of these areas progress and require our attention to progress with them. So we must learn to embrace the trends (or another great word, currents) of life. We can choose to adopt, adapt, or even start new trends, or we can hold tight to what is known and familiar. In life, there is a season for both. But we challenge you to embrace that new thing, new challenge, new trend and see what happens on the other side. ~ Melissa
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Child Nutrition Trends
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New Year, New Modern, Popular & Fun Food Court! Conor Doyle, AmTab Served Spotlight, ZeeTheCook Try Something
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Trending in 2023 Pisanick Partners
Use Your Words To Reframe & Refocus
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Hot Tips & Tricks to Get Kids Excited to Eat!
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Ashwaubenon School District (WI) Kaitlin Tauriainen, RD
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TRENDS
New year, new trends in child nutrition!
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New year, new trends in child nutrition! Food trucks, breakfast in the classroom, grab and go carts, and many others have been foodservice trends in past years. In 2023, what are the trends? I can speculate on a few that seem like they may take off this year after talking to a few Food Service Directors and experts across the country. Charcuterie Don’t write me off just yet saying this is old news. This has been a trend at home, but we are betting that 2023 is the year this takes off in schools. Not sold just yet? Let’s take a
look at Lunchables. They have been around forever, but are truly the original, basic, charcuterie for kids. Lunchables experienced 23% growth in Q3 of 2022. Lunchables is a competitor of yours.They sell meals with meat/meat alternate, grains, and fruit and are gaining market share. You can also
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Photo Cred: (1) Joe Urban, Greenville County Schools; (2) Vicki Bivens, Lenoir City Schools; (3-4) Lisa Kimber Hayes, School District of Pickens County
create the same product as a reimbursable meal. We have seen some incredible charcuterie in school meals programs that go beyond meat, cheese, crackers, and fruit. Don’t just take it from me, look at those beautiful examples! Breaking down the walls If you have been to a recent convention, you have seen a transformation from rectangle tables, with little round seats connected and 4-6 inches apart. You see tables, chairs, alternative seating, high tops, bright colors, and a big one-food court! I talked with Roy Pistone of Citrus County School Board in Florida, and Rae Hollenbeck, former Director of Osceola County Schools in Florida. Both are cutting edge and ahead of their times, designing beautiful concepts before it was trendy as you can see below. Roy went as far as having tile mosaics that went along with the type of food to be served in each food court section. The beautiful details really set this one apart. Of course, good food accompanies the aesthetics, but a good atmosphere surely helps! We expect to see more non-traditional cafeterias in 22-23. Scratch Cooking mixed with local foods Growing up, do you remember when almost everything in school lunch was homemade? Some have strayed from this for many years, but scratch cooking and speed-scratch are making a comeback. Someone I consider an expert on this is Joe Urban, Director of Food And Nutrition Services in Greenville County Schools . If you follow Joe’s new podcast, School Food Rocks, or Facebook, you know that Joe is a leading industry expert, often lending insight to Districts across the country. He says, “I believe an exemplary school foodservice program has an appropriate mix of scratch, speed-scratch, and high-quality prepared menu offerings, this is our model in Greenville. Some of our most popular scratch made items include Taco Beef, Vegetarian Chili, Meatloaf, Fried Rice for our Asian Bar, Mac N Cheese, Shepherd’s Pie, and Philly Cheesesteaks.
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Meatloaf video
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TRENDS
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Some of our most popular speed scratch items include Cheeseburgers, General Tso’s Chicken and Chicken Pot Stickers for our Asian Bar, Chicken Pot Pie, St Louis Ribs, Maryland Style Pit Beef and Prime Rib Grilled Cheese sandwiches, our composed salads including the Buffalo Blue Chicken and Vegetarian Cobb salads, Alaskan Pollock Fish & Chips, and our Pasta and Chicken Wing bars.” When asked what his advice for those looking to begin scratch cooking and/or speed-scratch, his response was,“My best advice for districts looking to increase scratch and speed scratch cooking is to collaborate with others who are doing it well, start slowly with a few proven items, and continue to build upon that model
as much as possible based on their individual capacities (equipment, staffing, etc.)”
Throwback Thursday #TBT isn’t just for social media. Citrus County Schools implemented this awesome concept this year, and we can see this one becoming popular. Anyone remember rectangle pizza, “pinched” rolls, savory salisbury steak, or other favorites from your childhood that seem to be no more? Roy put it best, “You don’t know where you are going until you know where you have been. People today don’t always know the past because they are always looking to the future.” With this thought in mind, Roy and his team thought it would be
https://youtu. be/0DHNcQ5bDxg
Vegetable Dumplings Video
https:// youtu.be/ GCc4xUNjX38
Photo Cred: (1) Kelly Price, Donegal School Food Service; (2-4) Joe Urban, Greenville County Schools Vegetable Dumplings Video : Joe Urban, Greenville County Schools; Throwback Thursday Videos : Photo Cred: Roy Pistone, Citrus County School District
“Our customers love variety, while sticking to foods they love. „
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fun to bring back meals of yesteryear. The district does this once a month, publicizes it, and everyone has gotten into it, especially faculty who ”are beyond themselves” with some of their childhood favorites. Part of the event involves creating YouTube videos to show off the new concept, so let’s take it back to yesteryear with rectangle pizza and salisbury steak. Customizable Stations When you look in your area at where students may be going for lunch, you probably see restaurants such as Moe’s, Uncle Maddios, Surcheros, Panda Express, and Jersey Mike’s. All of them have one major thing in common- they are customizable. Our customers love variety, while sticking to foods they love. In talking with Joe,he made a great point,“These Build Your Own Stations allow operators to utilize minimal serving line space and
maximize menu options for our customers. This is critically important in the K-12 industry because we have very little space in regards to the amount of menu offerings we can have each day.” As for what is popular, he said, “In Greenville, our Build Your Own Bar concepts allow students to customize their lunch to their liking, some of our Build Your Own Bar lunches have up to a dozen ways to customize a meal. Our more popular Build your Own Bars include the Taco Bar, Nacho Bar, Tater Tot Nacho Bar, Asian Bar, Chicken Wing Bar, Brunch Bar, Pasta Bar, and the Baked Potato Bar.” While your program may already be well on its way with some of these trends, I hope there are some new concepts that you can take with you into the New Year. Cheers to new ideas in 22-23 that are sure to take your program to the next level!
Special thanks to: Joe urban, Greenville County Schools for content con- tributions. Follow his program on these socials for more inspiration!
Kathryn was “born and raised” in the world of child nutrition but has worked with Child Nutrition Programs since 2006. Kathryn oversees several state and private contracts for TCB, provides operational oversight, and ensures project compliance and deadlines. Kathryn provides training in the areas of personal development and marketing on behalf of TCB. She has conducted hundreds of Administrative and Procurement reviews across the country on behalf of State Agencies. In States that TCB does not hold State contracts, Kathryn assists SFAs operate compliant programs, prepare for reviews, and her favorite-helping them ensure child nutrition procurement compliance! She is known for her energy and enthusiasm for school meals and has a passion for serving others. TCB Consulting is based out of Tallahassee Florida and has several remote offices across the country. Chief Operating Officer, TCB Consulting Kathryn Rippee, SNS
New Year, New Modern Popular & Fun Food Court!
Three trends that food courts across the country are utilizing to create more inviting environments for their students.
Color Bright and vibrant spaces are becoming the new normal inside food courts. Schools want to improve the experience for students in the lunchroom and one way to go about that is adding an influx of color. Specifically, adding school color to your space can help improve students‘ moods, energy levels and help them relax with their friends in a great looking space. Branding Another way to help make your students feel valued is by incorporating your school logo, mottos,and school name in your food court. Having students see their school mascot on the wall or on the table itself will instill them with immense pride. It’s important for them to feel proud of their space and of their school.
With 2022 fully in rear view it’s important to keep an eye on the 2023 outlook and beyond. One area to consider is what changes or additions would you like to see in your kitchen or K-12 Food Court? Here are three trends that food courts across the country are utilizing in order to create more inviting environments for their students. Product Variety In the past are the days of having the typical long, brown, rectangle table that we all grew up with in schools. K-12 Food Courts are making it a focal point to add more product variety to their space in order to give students more options. Mix and match different tables, sizes, and seating allows for students to be comfortable in their space.
Conor is actively involved in this school nutrition company who helps provide valuable insight on café modernization projects across the country. His favorite part about working with schools is knowing that students and staff will love their modernized spaces. Being able to transform ordinary environments to extraordinary ones that students love being a part of is amazing! Conor graduated from DePaul University with a bachelor’s degree in Marketing. Find Conor on LinkedIn! Digital Marketing Specialist, AmTab Manufacturing Conor Doyle
Zee Moussa is an Award-Winning Entrepreneur (known as the “Hospitality Alchemist”) and the Owner of ZeeTheCook, a Hospitality Company hosting Culinary Team-Building Events to kids, teens, and adults all over the world. As a diverse, woman-owned business for over 8 years, Zee’s mission is to impact people’s lives for the better, and make this world a better place. At ZeeTheCook, Culinary Challenges/Classes/Workshops are conducted to boost creativity, encourage teamwork, and inspire innovation. When employees work together to prepare food, they generate new ideas and build stronger bonds with their colleagues. A ZeeTheCook event can cook up not only a great meal, but good ideas, stronger teams, and more innovation throughout organizations. ZeeTheCook events are great for School Field Trips, Professional Development, Corporate Team-Bonding, Community/Family Events, and so much more! AWARDS • 2019 - Entrepreneur/Start Up Business of The Year, Michigan, USA • 2019 - Best of Michigan Business Award - Taste Sensation • 2020 - Director’s Award for Community Service, Society For Hospitality & Foodservice Management • 2020 - Women in Business Excellence, Henry Ford College • 2021 - President’s Award for Diversity and Inclusion Co- Chair, Society For Hospitality & Foodservice Management • 2020 + 2021 - 2 year Hospitality & Foodservice RISING STAR, Society For Hospitality & Foodservice Management • 2022 Woman of The Year Award - Michigan, USA ZeeTheCook SERVED SPOTLIGHT
The Gen Alpha generation (born between 2010-2024), which is namely our secondary students, have grown up with technology at their fingertips and have influences that are much more global and diverse than past generations. To keep these students as customers in the cafeteria we need to amp up our menu with these trends and food influences. How can we translate emerging food trends to our school nutrition programs? Strategies like infusing some spicy maple syrup to heat up your chicken and waffles is a way to highlight that trending flavor profile. Kicking up the spice, while diversifying the avenues away from just Buffalo sauce or spicy chicken sandwiches, gives way to trying things like Korean spicy cucumbers or a gochujang drizzle sauce . As a new year begins, think how you might make that traditional “kids menu” a bit different with global flavors and spices. Flavor trends meet healthy new year resolutions in Mediterranean dishes while meeting the goal of elevating taste and purpose into menus this year. Try Something Trending in 2023 Research is in and colleagues in the greater food industry are focusing their attention on emerging trends for 2023!
Who wants some new menu ideas? Thinking about engaging not only your students but the families you serve? Welcome to our column featuring
bites of nutrition knowledge and
insight for your team’s menu creation needs. We love a good theme at Pisanick Partners and have curated and crafted some of our favorite “Harvest of the Month”, “Simply Fresh”, “Global Trends’’, and “Comfort Classic’’ recipes to ignite your team’s idea engines. Our free digital cookbook resource is full of these recipes.
https://youtu. be/7pb2Uw2Lzj0
Meet the Pisanick Partners leadership team (From left to right) Marge Robison, MPH, RDN-LDN Sarah Carlson, MS, RD-LD David Pisanick, Co-Founder, CFO Maureen Pisanick, RDN-LDN Founder, CEO Tina Hastings, Operations Specialist Gina Nash, Operations Specialist (not pictured)
As students look for more meatless options, how about replacing some meat with anything mushroom ? When updating your menu cycles don’t forget the continued shift focused on vegetarian and vegan options in favorite restaurants and cafeterias near you! Driven by student demands for health and eco-friendly cuisine concepts that reveal reduction in carbon footprint or upcycling attributes, now is the time to embrace a menu that rises to the challenge! Scroll social media with a purpose and inspire more meatless opportunities on your menu. Our resident vegan partner shares her top searches for recipe inspiration!
“The easiest way to “veganize” your favorite recipe is to make simple swaps of ingredients.”
Sarah Carlson MS, RD-LD
“The easiest way to “veganize” your favorite recipe is to make simple swaps of ingredients. If a recipe calls for ground meat sub with cooked lentils. Have a favorite crispy chicken recipe? Use super firm tofu. Did you know you can make vegan “eggs” with just ground flaxseed and water? Simply take 1 tablespoon of ground flaxseeds and mix with 3 tablespoons of water. Let it set for 5 minutes. This will give you one egg substitute. Then add this into your favorite cookie recipe. I promise no one will know! These simple swaps allow you to enjoy your favorite meals in a new way. Still need/want inspiration? Instagram is a great place to explore. Try the following hashtags: #plantbased, #plantbaseddiet, and #plantbasedfood for endless possibilities! The most fun way is to get in the kitchen and experiment. The more you cook with new foods, the easier it will be. When it comes to exposing students early to new tastes, continue to strive for diversity and innovation and think “out of the box”. Try days provide opportunities for kids to ‘try it before they buy it’ and experiment with expanding their taste buds. Often parents can also benefit from expanding their food exposures, recipe ideas and cooking skills. Are there family engagement activities you can implement that would extend recipe ideas and new food exposure to families? We have worked with early childhood Head Start centers to provide Out of the Box cooking demos. This program provides families with recipes, a box of ingredients and demonstrations for creating
a recipe. See our team in action and steal this idea from a recent presentation of a minestrone soup recipe and corresponding video demonstration. By staying updated on emerging trends and implementing them in our programs we help to ensure that our child nutrition programs are meeting the diverse tastes and influences that drive our customers. Start the new year by assessing your program and reviewing your menu. Get excited about infusing your menus and programs with something new for 2023!
Our free digital cookbook resource is full of these recipes. NEW this year, look for recipes that are inspired by trends in copycat recipes, FREE Cookbook!
nostalgic foods and upcycling ingredients. We are launching a first edition print cookbook packed with some new food for thought, recipes, and easy to prepare dishes scaled for your kitchens and the homes of the families we serve! These are recipes that can spark joy in your creation and inspire participation. Professional development and culinary training go hand in hand - stay tuned for details on how to order your copy at www.pisanickpartners.com.
Pisanick Partners is a nutrition and operations based consulting firm with decades of experience in Child Nutrition. We have refined our approach through creation of cycle menus, training and development of staff, and implementing strategies that take on the task of not only attaining nutritional excellence, but also financial success in the K-12 environment. Our experience not only supports a school district in meeting all state and federal mandates for implementing the National School Lunch and Breakfast Programs, but also the menu creation with an eye for detail and meticulous organization. The objective is to quickly and accurately evaluate, analyze and organize a district’s nutritional program to insure compliance and easy on-going maintenance.
Hot Tips & Tricks to Get Kids Excited to Eat!
TIPS AT A GLANCE
• Variety is the spice of life • Young kids are more adventurous than you’d think • Authentic food matters • Utilize bars • Show kids where their food comes from • Talk with the kids • Talk with your legislator • Find a support group
Over the course of your career – whether it’s been 6 months or 25 years – what’s one of your most asked questions?
you do all the things to get the kids into the cafeteria. You make the menus. You select the foods. You manage the staff, the budget, and the utilization of resources. You might have tough conversations with the state department of education, the USDA, or your congressmen. All these things come back to one common thread: I feed kids. It’s harder than ever to please our students right now. Many of our states just reverted to the dreaded full paid, reduced, or free
If you’re like me, it’s “what is your favorite part of the job?”
If your immediate answer isn’t the kids, you’re probably in the wrong field. My second most asked question is “what exactly do you do each day?” and I always wonder where to start. We do a million and one things, but what you do each day should relate back to your passion for the job. “I feed kids.” Maybe you don’t physically serve them (though I bet you do more often than you’d like to admit), but
meal status for our students (kudos to those states who have deemed it necessary and important to offer free meals to all kids!). Our students are demanded so many things – early start times, practice after school, part-time jobs, college-credit courses – and they need food to sustain their energy and brain power throughout the day. Outside of school, kids are introduced to so many different options. You want Mexican food? Cool, that’s down the street. You want Thai? We’ve got that too. You want a cheeseburger? Here’s a list of 25 restaurants in the area that offer that option. If they’re lucky enough to have mom and/or dad home at dinner time, do they have the time to cook or the money to buy food? A lot of our kids aren’t even used to home cooking anymore. All of this leaves us guessing, calculating, and trying anything necessary to get kids in the door.
only encouraged but expected. Students want the opportunity to pick what they want to eat for lunch. If they have the choice to leave campus, we need to offer them choices not to.
Young kids are more adventurous than you’d think
Obviously, our most popular count days are things like chicken nuggets and pizza in our elementary schools, but we’ve been trying some new things that are encouraging as well: mandarin orange chicken, egg rolls, carne asada meat, etc. The most important thing is to not give up after the first menu day.
Here are some of the hot tips & tricks I’ve found to get the kids in our doors:
Variety is the spice of life Especially in the older grades, offering a second, third, or even eighth choice is not
Hot Tips & Tricks to Get Kids Excited to Eat!
Show kids where their food comes from This is cool. Fork Farms, LLC sells hydroponic gardens across the country that require minimal effort and pump out some fancy greens (and cucumbers, tomatoes, strawberries, herbs, peppers… anything that’s not a root veggie!). Feature that baby right in your cafeteria so kids can look at it when they’re coming through your line. Then, when you serve the produce on the line, tell them exactly where it came from! Don’t be afraid to give them samples off the unit either. And have them help grow the food. Talk with the kids I cannot stress this enough!! How can you know what your customer base is looking for without talking to them? I eat lunch with the elementary kids about 3 times per week, and make sure to mosey around the
Authentic food matters My pet peeve as a food service director is when we call American tacos “south of the border.” Absolutely not, my friends. Those are not authentically south of anything past our US border. I live in Northeast Wisconsin and our students know better than that. We have started serving authentic cuisines and the students know and love it. We’ve attracted more people who are saying one of two things: 1. This is what I eat at home; or 2. Thank you for making a real meal for me. Utilize bars You want to spice up your menu? How about trying a new layout with your salad bar or steam table line? Don’t just have spaghetti; have 2 types of pasta, 2-3 sauces, and different toppings for the kids. Put different sauces on chicken wings. We eat with our eyes first. Remember this!
“We have started serving authentic cuisines and the students know and love it. We’ve attracted more people who are saying one of two things: 1. This is what I eat at home; or 2. Thank you for making a real meal for me. „ older kids, who don’t love for you to eat lunch at their table. If they give you an idea, work hard to get it on the menu. It’s great to go back to that school and have the kids say, “I asked you for smoothies and it was on the menu the next month!” It means a lot to them to know you’re listening.
Talk with your legislator Show them pictures, videos, testimonials. You are the expert and they’re working for you. Don’t forget how important your voice is, even if you feel like you’re never being heard. As school nutrition directors, we longed for the days where we could feed all kids for free. It happened, and it was awesome! To go backwards was so disheartening, but we need to make sure we’re still informing our legislators of our needs. Beat your drum! You deserve it! Find a support group Other directors in your area are a great start! You need to bounce ideas (or frustrations) off someone. Let’s face it: we speak a different language. No one knows direct diversion, reimbursable meal, or all our acronyms like our counterparts in other districts. We have the luxury of not competing – so share your good ideas! You’re going to see what’s trending as a menu concept from every food broker out there. They have great insight and great ideas! It doesn’t matter how good you think the food is, though, if your kids aren’t eating it. This year, I want the #1 trending item in your district to be the kids. What do they want? What do they deserve? How can we make them successful? Trends are ever changing, so are kids. Make them the trend you follow into the rest of your career. You’ll thank yourself later!
Kaitlin is the Child Nutrition Coordinator and Registered Dietitian for the Ashwaubenon School District. She has a strong passion for feeding people and encouraging healthy lifestyles to all kids and adults. Kaitlin has worked in school nutrition for 12 years. She has served in the SNA-WI legislative committee and loves to advocate for the hard work of her colleagues around the state and the country. Kaitlin’s biggest accomplishments in life are her two amazing daughters, whom she lives with along with their furry best friend! Ashwaubenon School District (WI) Kaitlin Tauriainen, RD
Assessing Diversity and Inclusion in School Nutrition Programs
Highlighting the importance of diversity and inclusion (D&I) in school nutrition will be one of many ICN’s key developments starting in 2023. To date, ICN has begun to assess the efforts schools are making to adopt D&I practices in their day-to-day operations. ICN worked with child nutrition professionals to arrange an exploratory task force meeting with the goal of identifying diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) practices in school nutrition settings. The task force assessed what is working well, the challenges and gaps that hinder accountability and intentionality among the school nutrition team, the current DEI climate and practices in school nutrition programs, and training opportunities for future development. Some key take-a-ways shared by child nutrition professionals included: A Need More opportunities to hear from school nutrition professionals who currently implement DEI practices would further delineate the challenges, opportunities, best practices, key learnings, and creative strategies needed to develop and sustain programs that improve sense of purpose and belonging for members of school nutrition programs. A Challenge The ongoing generational stigma surrounding school nutrition staff and
services results in a disconnect that stems from a lack of understanding of the school nutrition program among school leaders and community members. An Opportunity Bringing in experts to deliver and facilitate future DEI education and training is crucial to help create room for all voices to contribute to conversations related to DEI—leaving little room for biases and more space for experienced facilitation.
“Bringing in experts to deliver and facilitate future DEI education and training is crucial to help create room for all voices to contribute to conversations related to DEI.”
ICN Resources:
Virtual Instructor-Led Trainings (VILTs) for individuals • Training Culturally Diverse
ICN realizes the impact diversity and inclusion can make in schools—creating Tell us about your program
Groups (4 hours) – Two sessions available on March 16, 2023
• Register HERE Face-to-Face Training Topics for Groups • Training Culturally Diverse Groups (4 hours) • More Info and Request a Training HERE Training Materials for Download • Includes Instructor’s Manual, Participant’s Workbook, PowerPoint Presentation • More Info and Download Materials HERE All ICN training opportunities and resources are offered at NO COST to users.
an environment of belonging and purpose within the whole school community. Therefore, further assessing DEI practices in schools is necessary to define the role ICN will have in providing value to DEI efforts in schools. Does your school have an established DEI initiative? ICN would like you to join the conversation and share insight into your school’s DEI practices.
Click Here for a quick survey
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Education and Training Specialist, The Institute of Child Nutrition. Janae Owens, MS, CHES
Janae Owens is a Certified Health Education Specialist. She promotes overall health and wellness in the Lafayette-Oxford-University community and throughout the State of Mississippi. She holds a BS in Exercise Science from Mississippi State University and a MS in Health Promotion from the University of Mississippi. She’s currently an Education and Training Specialist at the Institute of Child Nutrition.
ICN Website
The Institute of Child Nutrition (ICN), part of the School of Applied Sciences at The University of Mississippi, is the only federally funded national center dedicated to applied research, education and training, and technical assistance for child nutrition programs. The Institute’s mission is to provide information and services that promote the continuous improvement of child nutrition programs.
Ideas to Boost Your Bottom Line Profitability is key. Increase your profit margins and you have the opportunity to invest in and grow your business. Check out these tips to boost your menu margins.
Make it Quick & Keep Labor Costs Under Control Cut the time it takes to get food out to students and give yourself more time to work towards your big goals by taking ready to use ingredients and tweaking them to fit your menu. Plus, keep ever-rising labor costs down by using pre-prepped ingredients like cheese sauces and frozen soup options. Reduce Waste Decrease waste and profits increase, you already know this. But do you know how to do this? Look for ingredients that are pre-prepped and have 100% yield. Use them as a reliable, fixed cost in your recipes. Similarly try building your menu to use each and every scrap. If on Monday you serve soup and a bread roll, then on Tuesday pre-plan a meal that comes with a side of garlic bread to use any
leftover rolls before they go bad.
Do Inventory Make inventory a monthly practice to help you truly understand what you have, what you need and what is going out of date soon. Running a tight inventory ship is a sure way to reduce costs and waste. Reduce Turnover We’ve all felt the effects of the turnover this past year. How do you keep people engaged, on board and reduce the need to train new teammates? Try taking away mundane tasks and giving them work that uses their minds and keeps them fulfilled. Again, rely on ready-to-use ingredient items so that the team doesn’t have to work on repetitive tasks. Invest in your people and they will give their all to your program.
Graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, Annelise has spent her career making sure food sounds appetizing on paper, looks good in pictures and tastes amazing when you order it. Her day-to-day consists of working as Marketing Manager at Ready Foods to connect food service operators with ready-to-use kitchen solutions that are easy to incorporate into a kitchen flow and bring great flavor to menu items. Her favorite hot lunch in elementary school was always nacho day. Ready Foods Annelise McAuliffe Soares
Podcast Spotlight
Each edition we’ll bring you the freshest podcast content to boost your programs, your knowledge, and hopefully your mood. Grab a coffee, wine, or even your walking shoes and listen in.
78 min
About
The School Food Rocks Podcast
THE SCHOOL FOOD ROCKS PODCAST
is a platform hosted by Joe
In this episode, Joe Urban and Lauren Couchois discuss with Marlon all the reasons all school foodservice programs should be promoting their programs on social media as well as some exciting new things happening with his company. Episode #12: Marlon Gordon, Founder & CEO of NxtGen Network
Urban to discuss important topics with stakeholders from across the country regarding school food, the challenges facing districts, upcoming legislation, and sharing best
practices for a positive impact nationwide.
23 min
About
The JUST LEAD Podcast with Mark Quattrochi is for active leaders who are making timely decisions
JUST LEAD PODCAST
The Introverted Leader: Unleashing Quiet Confidence in a Noisy World
in a dynamic marketplace. Turn fast, move
In all our years developing leaders, one of the biggest misconceptions is that leadership is reserved for the extroverts. And many introverts who would make PHENOMENAL leaders disqualify themselves. But if you look closer, introverts actually possess valuable leadership traits that are full of potential. The truth is they have characteristics and distinctions that can make them incredible assets to any organization. Whether you’re an introvert looking for a boost of confidence, or someone who’s wondering if an introvert can get the job done --- LEAN IN.
forward, and make the most of every moment. Mark Q is a Brooklyn native, baseball fanatic, & former music industry leader. Now, he’s the Lead Pastor at theChapel in Tampa Bay, FL.
45 min
About
Pass the Tots is your one-stop podcast for everything around the intersection of foodservice and technology, the customer and operator experiences, and the latest innovations on how to make those experiences delightful! You’ll leave every episode with useful information -- and probably some laughs, too. By Nutrislice.
THE PASS THE TOTS PODCAST
Jenna Kaczmarski, Founder of Locally Grown
Interested in local farm-to-table solutions? Want to become more resilient against supply chain shortages? Then you should hear what Jenna Kaczmarski has to say. Jenna began her career as a K-12 dietitian in Florida, where she helped feed around 100,000 students every year. After becoming Program Director of School Nutrition, Jenna believed she could do more to make her dream of farm-to-school come true, so she founded the non-profit Locally Grown to bring equitable, resilient food systems to Florida schools.
Use Your Words It’s cool to jump on a trend train– but how cool is it when you’re part of starting a new trend?
TO REFRAME & REFOCUS
As School Nutrition Professionals, we have a unique opportunity to start trends of all kinds in our industry which will impact students, staff, families, and the overall community.
School Nutrition is a niche, and we are leaders in the industry. Whether you are a Frontline Worker, a Kitchen Manager, a Dietitian, or a Director, we are all leaders in our own right. Now I invite you, leaders, to hear me out on a trend we can start today in school cafeterias. A trend that can extend its reach from our cafeterias into the homes of the families we serve - this trend is how we talk about food, whether it‘s through nutrition education, in our marketing, or out loud. Words matter and they definitely matter to the communities we support and serve. While our intentions are good, we must consider the impact of our words, whether written or verbal. Before you continue, I’ll admit that I have said or written some of the things below that I am advising against and, without a doubt, will make future mistakes. Once we know better, we get the choice to do better.
Here are two ways we can start the trend to reframe and refocus how we talk about food in schools.
ONE: Create a space where school food is not compared to food served at home. Many of us have seen research highlighting that school meals are healthier than foods sent from home. Like this research article that found that “packed lunches from home have more calories, fat, saturated fat, and sugar than school lunches, and less protein, fiber, vitamin A, and calcium.” Study results like this are great news for school meal programs. Research supporting what we know to be true only helps us advance our cause. However, we do not need to compare school food to food from home as further proof that school meals are amazing. Like Sonya Teclai says,“You don‘t have to dim someone else‘s light for yours to shine.” Our intention may be to tout how healthy school meals are to counter decades of negative publicity; however, we may be unintentionally shaming and blaming families. With these comparisons, we might be shaming our families’ cultural foods, their circumstances, their built environment , or things that are really out of their control. These comparisons also fail to acknowledge policies, practices, and systems that negatively impact families’ access to food and economic opportunities.The last thing that School Nutrition Professionals want to do is shame (or blame) families when the goal is to educate them about school meals and to invite more students to participate. So what can we do? We can focus on the message we want to share and just nix the comparison altogether! For example: Instead of: School lunch is healthier than packed school lunches because we offer whole grains, fruit, and veggies daily! Try this: Our students are offered fiber- filled whole grains, nutrient- packed fruits, and veggies daily for lunch!
TWO: Grow beyond views that demonize foods and beverages. Many of us support moving towards more scratched-cooked meals in schools, given that our programs have the sustainable resources and training to do so. Still, we do not have to demonize other forms of food while proclaiming our support for scratch-cooked meals. Let’s take prepackaged or individually wrapped products, for example. Prepackaged products serve a purpose and nourish multiple populations. Think about it. In our communities, we have single-parent/ guardian households, parent/guardians who work multiple jobs, school-aged siblings caring for their younger siblings, student-athletes on the go, elders living by themselves, unhoused people, and disabled people (or people with disabilities) that rely on the convenience of prepackaged foods. Since we are School Nutrition Besties, I can be real with you for a moment… During the first couple of years of COVID, prepackaged foods were clutch. They helped us when we were short on labor, helped
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us provide more curbside school meals, and ultimately helped us feed our community during an ongoing global pandemic. In addition, many heat and serve school meal programs are doing incredible work today and still nourish students with prepackaged foods. We don’t want to minimize the work of our peers, and we don’t want to send the wrong message to families by inadvertently shaming them. Again, what can we do? Reframe and refocus on our message without demonizing any food or beverages. For example: Instead of: We are excited to announce that our cafeterias are preparing more scratch-cooked meals because prepackaged foods are dangerous and detrimental to students‘ health. Focus on: What your school meal program offers and the positive changes being made. Try this: We are excited to announce that our cafeterias are moving towards more scratch-cooked meals to expand the flavors and textures of our meals and enhance our students‘ overall school meal experience.
Families are out here doing the best they can with what they have. Sound familiar? It should because that‘s exactly what school meal programs and School Nutrition Professionals across the nation do. I encourage you to reframe, shift the focus, and meet families exactly where they are. Alright, School Nutrition trendsetters, I would love to see this transition from trend to standard in our industry. Let’s make it happen!
Angela is a second-career Registered Dietitian and recently transitioned out of her role as a Nutritionist at an Arizona school district to the School Lunch Coordinator position with LunchAssist. She started her career as a Dietitian over 4 years ago after unexpectedly falling in love with School Nutrition during her dietetic internship. Angela sees School Nutrition as the ideal place to bridge her passion for tasty food, nutrition education, health equity, and food justice. She loves any opportunity to be creative and feels that the world of School Nutrition continues to be a great place to flex those creative muscles. LunchAssist; School Nutrition Coordinator Angela Gomez, RDN, SNS
AYA Wellness
NxtGen Network
NxtLevel Wellness
Teaser Video
NxtLevel Wellness is all about the journey of self improvement. Join Sam and Marlon on their shenanigans, as they learn more about nutrition, health, wellness, and some of the things we can all do to live life at the NxtLevel.
Full Video
Samantha Michael
NxtGen Network CEO Fitness Fanatic Marlon Gordon
Yoga teacher RYT-500, Certified Prenatal Yoga Teacher , Group Exercise/Les Mills instructor/ personal trainer
Samantha Michael is a yoga teacher and fitness trainer with a background in nursing. Preventative and mental health have been long time passions of hers. Samantha sets out to provide and explore experiences that are accessible, fun, and that creates space for self-motivation and love of the journey. Samantha played sports growing up, probably not better than Marlon, and those created a lifelong connection to movement and fitness.
Marlon Gordon is by no means a fitness or health expert but both have always been a passion of his. From a young age, Marlon played sports competitively which is the reason why he is consistently striving to out hustle others in his professional life and in the gym. Some might call him over-competitive. Having a mom that is a registered dietitian has helped him build an understanding and respect for food from a young age which is the reason why he is on the search for the right fuel to help him thrive while living a high octane lifestyle.
Calling all CONTRIBUTORS We Want YOUR Voice in Served!
Your Words: Two Ways
Cover Article
Feature Article
Cover articles are the main content of each of our editions. Space is limited to only three articles per month - and also get title space on the cover. Cover articles must directly relate to the monthly theme of Served Digizine (see below). Articles can include pictures, videos/audio, and written word. For the best-looking article, your written content should be between 800-900 words. Videos should be submitted with link to web hosted video. Things to remember when writing a Cover Article:
Feature articles are simply shorter articles and information that support the monthly theme of each edition but do not have to be directly related. Preference will be given to features that fit the edition theme most closely. Things to remember when writing a Feature Article: Articles can include pictures, videos/audio, and written word. For the best-looking article, your written content should be between 400-450 words. Videos should be submitted with link to web hosted video.
2023 Monthly Themes
January: Trends in School Nutrition March: Building Blocks of SN Programs April: Sustainability June: Success & Celebration: Honoring SY 2022-23
July: Professional Development September: Back to School! Starting Strong October: Farm to School December: Time to Recharge
Hey Industry! We want your thoughts and opinions too! We welcome articles from industry members at no charge! Contributions can’t be brand or product specific - but you can link to your contact info in your bio! Contact Us For More Info!
Don’t forget to submit your bio too!
Dr. Wilson has dedicated her career to improving access to healthy school meals for all children, presently serving as Executive Director for the Urban School Food Alliance . She has spent 23 years as a school nutrition director in three Wisconsin public schools, five years as Executive Director for the Institute of Child Nutrition, two years as USDA Deputy Under Secretary of Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services, appointed by President Obama. Dr. Wilson holds a BS in Dietetics, a MS in Food Science and Nutrition and a PhD in Foodservice and Lodging Management. She has received many peer nominated awards and is considered one of the top experts in school nutrition. Dr. Katie Wilson, SNS Executive Director, Urban School Food Alliance
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