“We’re here to help the kids be healthy. Simple as that.” Camille, FoodCorps leader at Boulder Elementary School says.

That were the exact words that I heard at work last week as my supervisor was looking into running a catering business. With the School Breakfast Program, National School Lunch Program and now the DC Summer Meals Program, it is great that DC works hard to combat the problem of child hunger. Last week, we visited US Congressman Jim McGovern who is an activist with the “End Hunger Now” campaign. However, combatting hunger and nutrition can have a big gap. Ending hunger is one thing, but actually having access to nutritious food is another. As a result, there is a gap where organizations such as FoodCorps can step in. CentroNía, like Boulder Elementary school, has more than half of the students on free or reduced lunch benefits and almost 90% on the school meal plan. As children have 2 out of 3 meals at school, efforts should be concentrated at creating a wellness environment at school.

Working at CentroNía, I am now even convinced that food education should start as early as possible. Research has found that most food preferences and tastes are developed before the age of 5, so exposing children to new foods and textures are strategically important because “It is much easier to start a habit than to change it.”  This was what my supervisor said when we visited a center that we did food consultation on. The results at Bambini Play & Learn Center after a week of adopting our food menu was encouraging. No more peanut butter jelly sandwiches or frozen pizzas, the children ate all of the chili con carne, spinach salad and pineapple. One child kept on saying “Más! Más! More! More!” even when his plate wasn’t finished. I think that it is never too late to make change and so what Camille is doing with 2^nd graders is very meaningful and would be something I might look out for in the future when I graduate. I especially liked her rules of the two-bite club, to have two bites of something before deciding if one likes it or not and banning “ewww, gross” from the children. Not only does it train children to be more open-minded, it also creates a more positive atmosphere because children are easily influenced. I have been teaching cooking classes to PreK children and will definitely try to adopt her methods.

I have just read an article from The Washington Post quoting that federal data shows a 43% drop in obesity rates among children 2 to 5. I believe that this is the results of many organizations that recognize the importance of providing healthy school foods and shaping children’s palettes since young. As a result, I do see a bright future for our next generation.