In terms of ambience, Charlotte Central's cafeteria is—well, conjure up your own elementary school lunch experience. There's more than one reason to run to recess. But on a recent visit to observe a group of researchers from UVM's Johnson Lab, the lunch ladies were serving up something more likely to be found on a restaurant menu: risotto with mushrooms and peas. It's the result of a host of programs by schools around Vermont to offer more tempting choices—with locally sourced ingredients when possible, including herbs and vegetables from the playground garden—and to get children to eat more healthfully. But is it working?
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