Lunchrooms have become the next front in the fight for healthier eating
EDITOR’S NOTE: This article was originally published on Food & Wine. Since its publication, sweetgreen released the following statement:
These images are not intended to be exact representations of school lunches, but instead, are meant to portray different types of foods found in cafeterias around the world. To create this series, we evaluated government standards for school lunch programs, regional cuisine and food culture, and photos that real students had taken of their meals and shared online.
In school cafeterias in Italy, children enjoy local fish on a bed of arugula, caprese salad, red grapes and fresh bread. In Korea, lunch includes fish soup, tofu, steamed rice and bell peppers. In the US, though, school cafeterias are serving up frozen chicken nuggets, processed fruit preserved in syrup and cookies. Those are some of the findings illustrated in a recent photo series compiled by sweetgreen, an East Coast salad restaurant chain.
According to the company, whose sweetgreens in School program teaches students about nutrition, fitness and sustainable eating habits, 32 million schoolchildren nationwide eat school cafeteria lunch every day and take in more than half their calories at school. That makes the differences in school lunch around the world even more noteworthy. With childhood obesity rates on the rise and recent science establishing a strong link between nutrition and cognitive function, lunchrooms have become the next front in the fight for healthier eating even as loopholes in school lunch regulations still define things like French fries and pizza as vegetables. With those loopholes in mind, here’s a look at what’s on school menus elsewhere.
U.S.A.
Frozen chicken nuggets, processed fruit preserved in syrup and cookies
Brazil
Pork with mixed veggies, black beans and rice, salad, bread and baked plantains
Finland
Pea soup, beet salad, carrot salad, bread and pannakkau (dessert pancake) with fresh berries
France
Steak, carrots, green beans, cheese and fresh fruit
Greece
Baked chicken over orzo, stuffed grape leaves, tomato and cucumber salad, fresh oranges, and greek yogurt with pomegranate seeds
Italy
Local fish on a bed of arugula, pasta with tomato sauce, caprese salad, baguette and some grapes
South Korea
Fish soup, tofu over rice, kimchi and fresh veggies
Spain
Sautéed shrimp over brown rice and vegetables, gazpacho, fresh peppers, bread and an orange
Ukraine
Mashed potatoes with sausage, borscht, cabbage and syrniki (a dessert pancake)
This article originally appeared on FWx.
More from FWx:
5 Worst Excuses for Not Eating Gluten
Diet Fads Show No Evidence of Long Term Benefits
7 Ways to Use Avocados that Go Beyond Guacamole
Read next: Hungry Planet: What The World Eats
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U.S.A.
sweetgreen Frozen chicken nuggets, processed fruit preserved in syrup and cookies
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Brazil
sweetgreen Pork with mixed veggies, black beans and rice, salad, bread and baked plantains
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Finland
sweetgreen Pea soup, beet salad, carrot salad, bread and pannakkau (dessert pancake) with fresh berries
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France
sweetgreen Steak, carrots, green beans, cheese and fresh fruit
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Greece
sweetgreen Baked chicken over orzo, stuffed grape leaves, tomato and cucumber salad, fresh oranges, and greek yogurt with pomegranate seeds
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Italy
sweetgreen Local fish on a bed of arugula, pasta with tomato sauce, caprese salad, baguette and some grapes
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South Korea
sweetgreen Fish soup, tofu over rice, kimchi and fresh veggies
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Spain
sweetgreen Sautéed shrimp over brown rice and vegetables, gazpacho, fresh peppers, bread and an orange
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Ukraine
sweetgreen Mashed potatoes with sausage, borscht, cabbage and syrniki (a dessert pancake)
This article originally appeared on FWx.
More from FWx:
5 Worst Excuses for Not Eating Gluten
Diet Fads Show No Evidence of Long Term Benefits
7 Ways to Use Avocados that Go Beyond Guacamole
Read next: Hungry Planet: What The World Eats
