How did our children end up eating nachos, pizza, and Tater Tots for lunch? Taking us on an eye-opening journey into the nation's school kitchens, this superbly researched book is the first to provide a comprehensive assessment of school food in the United States. Janet Poppendieck explores the deep politics of food provision from multiple perspectives--history, policy, nutrition, environmental sustainability, taste, and more. How did we get into the absurd situation in which nutritionally regulated meals compete with fast food items and snack foods loaded with sugar, salt, and fat? What is the nutritional profile of the federal meals? How well are they reaching students who need them? Opening a window onto our culture as a whole, Poppendieck reveals the forces--the financial troubles of schools, the commercialization of childhood, the reliance on market models--that are determining how lunch is served. She concludes with a sweeping vision for change: fresh, healthy food for all children as a regular part of their school day.
Author(s): Janet Poppendieck
Series: California Studies in Food and Culture
Edition: 1
Publisher: University of California Press
Year: 2010
Language: English
Pages: 368
Table of Contents......Page 8
Acknowledgments......Page 10
Introduction......Page 14
1. School Food 101......Page 39
2. Food Fights......Page 59
3. Penny Wise, Pound Foolish......Page 97
4. How Nutritious Are School Meals?......Page 124
5. The Missing Millions......Page 146
6. Hunger in the Clasroom......Page 174
7. Free, Reduced Price, Paid......Page 203
8. Local Heroes......Page 235
Conclusion......Page 270
Notes......Page 310
Bibliography......Page 346
Index......Page 356
