Uncategorized

National School Lunch Week Challenge Winners Announced

In order to celebrate National School Lunch Week this year, we designed an initiative challenging students to dig deeper into learning about the food that they eat. Teams were challenged to create a lunch that was equal parts delicious, sustainable, and healthy. Our challenge was open to all middle school and high school students in the nation. We are very proud to announce our winners, Isabel and Olivia Betancourt!

Get to know Olivia:

Olivia is 14 years old, she is in the 8th grade, and goes to Plantation Key School in Islamorada, Florida. Her favorite subject is science and her favorite snack is Goldfish crackers. We asked her a few questions about her challenge experience:

Q: What was your favorite part of working on your submission?
A: Designing the menu and looking up local sources for food.

Q: Has this project changed how you think about the food you eat?
A: Yes! I didn’t realize how many calories are in the smallest things like salad dressing and cheese. I plan to eat healthier and more local food.

Get to know Isabel:

Isabel is 13 years old, she is in the 7th grade, and goes to Plantation Key School in Islamorada, Florida. Her favorite subject is reading and she likes to eat salad as a snack. We asked her a few questions about her challenge experience:

Q: What was your favorite part of working on your submission?
A: I liked looking up the local farm, we don’t have too many in the Keys but there are a lot of farms in Florida, even a place that makes cheese and yogurt.

Q: Has this project changed how you think about the food you eat?
A: I try to eat healthy, but now I have been thinking about where my food comes from. I like to get our fruit from the farmers market because it tastes better when it’s local and fresh.

We wanted to create an opportunity for the winners to continue learning about healthy and sustainable food. So, as part of their prize, they will receive a voucher to a sustainable, organic market, URBN GRDN! We are very proud of the work that this team put into our National School Lunch Week Challenge! This initiative was a great success.

A big THANK YOU, to our sponsors at Organic Valley!