Students Say: Bring on the Veggies!

This may come as a surprise to parents, but students in the say they would welcome more fruits and vegetables in their school lunches.

“They say you should be healthy, [but] they give you hamburgers and pizza and foods like that,” said Heidi Gutierrez, a sophomore at Capistrano Valley High School.

Facsimiles of fast food may go the way of the candy cigarettes when the U.S. Department of Agriculture starts enforcing that would make school lunches healthier. As part of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 signed into law by President Barack Obama on Dec. 13, the USDA has proposed that free or reduced-fee meals served through the national school lunch and breakfast programs have less fat, less salt and more whole grains, fruits and vegetables.

Many students interviewed by Patch this week said they hope to see broccoli and melon as part of the offerings.

“I bought lunch before. It wasn’t very good. There was nothing healthy at all,” said Danielle Stockton, a fifth-grader at in San Juan Capistrano. She put in a pitch for more sandwiches and granola bars, along with better fruit.

This month at the elementary schools, the school district is offering pizza every Friday. Pizza is available every day at the middle schools and high schools. Other regularly offered entrées at the high school include a carnitas burrito and hamburgers. Chicken burgers, sautéed Asian dishes and “lasagna bowls” are offered less frequently.

“Definitely, the burgers aren’t very good, and the fries taste like they’re 5 days old,” said Capo Valley senior Eric Hunter. He prefers the sandwiches and Asian dishes.

On the other hand, sophomore Chad Hoffman really likes the flavor of school lunches at Capo. “The chicken’s good, and so are the fries. I hope they don’t change it,” he said.

Currently, middle- and high school students may choose among several side dishes to their entrée. The only vegetables offered are potato triangles and carrots at the middle schools, and only carrots at the high schools.

Under the proposed new rules, students would get cut or steamed vegetables–such as broccoli, jicama and green-pepper slices. An example of how a menu might be altered is here.

An increased amount of veggies is OK with Capo Valley senior Dulce Santibanez. She only buys lunch when she’s hungry and knows she can’t stop at home right after school.

“I want salads because they’re, like, nutritious,” Santibanez said. The school usually has "just fattening stuff. The fruits are OK.” She suggested less fattening dressings and chicken that is not fried or sautéed.

About 21 percent of the district's 50,000 students receive free or reduced-fee meals, Dawn Davey, director of food and nutrition for the district, has said.

The proposal would reduce students’ intake of starchy vegetables, such as potatoes, to one cup per week. The district already meets the milk requirements, which would allow for milk in only non-fat or 1-percent-fat varieties.

“I think it’s a good idea. Maybe they can have fruit that kids like,” said Grace Dennen, 10, a fourth-grader at . She suggested that pizza only be offered once a month so it could be more of a treat, and “people will get excited.”

For the first time, the government is also seeking to restrict the calorie count of lunches and breakfasts. Between the two meals, elementary students would have a maximum of 650 calories, 700 for middle-schoolers and 850 for high school students. No more than 10 percent of the calories can come from saturated fat.

Malia Ward, a seventh-grader at Bernice Ayer Middle School in San Clemente, said she purposely brings lunches from home that are healthy, with items such as whole-wheat bread, turkey, fruits and vegetables.

School-made lunches are “pretty much all unhealthy food. It’s all junk food. It tastes great, but there’s no nutrition in it,” she said.

The public is invited to comment about the USDA’s proposal through April 13.

San Juan Capistrano Cami Roberts, mother of four, said she encourages her children to eat vegetables by allowing them to dip them into as much ranch dressing as they want.

“They can burn off the [calories from the] fat, but they need their vitamins,” she said.

Editor's Note: due to an editing error, Cami Roberts name was initially misspelled.