School nutrition program shaking up student meals

The school cafeteria has long been portrayed as a place where students gather during lunch for camaraderie with friends or to face off against foes.

But what has traditionally been remembered most about the school lunchroom isn’t who sat where or what was said to make friends angry with one another, but the food. Whether good or bad, everyone remembers the food.

It’s an area that Linda Holland, the director of Polk School District’s School Nutrition program, is trying to make sure that when students carry memories of meals on local school campuses with them, they are positive ones of full bellies and smiles.

Holland said that sometimes, it can be a challenge to meet that goal, especially when schools are kept within guidel i nes t o ensure t hat healthy food is being served to kids.

“I think the main complaint has been the food has no taste. So we’ve been trying to make healthy food taste better by looking at a lot of different options,” Holland said.

One solution to that goal that Polk School District students have been given the chance to shake onto their meals: spices.

Custom- made seasoning blend recipes are being put together in-house, and Holland said it’s a healthy alternative to sauces since the seasoning doesn’t add salt or sugars to students.

So instead of spreading sugar or dipping sauces on top of sweet potato fries served up in the cafeteria, students can instead sprinkle on a special blend with cinnamon to add flavors that give a healthy alternative.