The Benwood Foundation will put nearly $100,000 into five Hamilton County elementary schools to help combat childhood obesity and expose more low-income students to fruits and vegetables.
Brown Academy, Calvin Donaldson, Orchard Knob, Eastside, Hardy, Rivermont and Clifton Hills elementary schools are the first group to receive funding under Gaining Ground, Benwood’s new initiative to promote local foods.
“All of this is a win-win,” said Russell Cliche, coordinator of school health for the Hamilton County Department of Education. “These students are from a lower socioeconomic background, and they aren’t exposed to local growers. … We need to increase consumption of fruits and vegetables. There is a very low percentage of our population living a healthy lifestyle.”
Issues of school nutrition and diet-related disease among students have taken front and center in recent months. The White House announced the Let’s Move campaign in February to establish community support for addressing childhood obesity.
Fifteen percent of elementary students in Hamilton County are classified as obese, school documents show. One in three children in the United States are either overweight or obese, according to figures from Benwood Foundation.
“This is a great project because it touches the family and community in many different ways,” said Jeff Pfitzer, program director for Gaining Ground.
With the investment in school nutrition, Gaining Ground will provide one serving of fresh fruit and vegetables to students three or four days a week outside of the cafeteria. The produce will be used by teachers to educate students about healthy eating, said Mr. Cliche.
The money also will help create training programs for cafeteria staff and parents to increase the number of fruits and vegetables in students’ diets.
What is Gaining Ground?Gaining Ground is a three-year, $1.65 million investment by the Benwood Foundation to establish a local food economy and link more consumers with regional producers of eggs, meat, fruits and vegetables.
The “Farm to School” program will increase cafeteria staff’s knowledge of how to prepare and serve fresh fruits and vegetables, and “Healthy Home Kitchen” will provide cooking lessons from local chefs to parents in targeted schools.
Local growers will be encouraged to come to schools and sell produce since many families don’t have access to regional foods, officials said.
“With this grant, we will be creating more opportunities for school leadership and staff, students, and families to understand, practice, and incorporate healthy eating habits,” said Carolyn K. Childs, director of school nutrition in Hamilton County schools, in a statement.
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