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Students get nutritional choices Photo by Bob Pennell Eddie Miller, a seventh-grader at McLoughlin Middle School, shows off the burrito and (fat-free) chocolate milk he chose for lunch. School lunches are offering healthier fare these days, although getting kids to actually eat the stuff is a challenge, officials say. But will they pick veggies over fries? By VICKI GUARINO Yogurt with fresh apple wedges. Spinach salad sprinkled with sunflower seed. Slices of jicama and carrots with whole-grain bread. Beyond the slabs of pizza and piles of chicken nuggets, low-fat fare is edging into school cafeterias to meet new federal nutrition rules. Kids still can get burgers and fries, but they also can have a side order of veggies with low-calorie cheese dip. Beginning this year, the U.S. Department of Agriculture is requiring schools to cut fat and salt in federally subsidized student meals. Meals served over a school week must average no more than 30 percent of calories from fat. Less than 10 percent of calories can be from saturated fat. Diets high in fat and saturated fat have been linked to childhood obesity and heart disease. But the fattiest foods -- such as pizza and french fries -- also happen to be popular. So the tough part of the job for school cooks isn't setting out the spinach and apples, it's getting kids to put them on their plates and eat them. "We try to give them things they will eat and not throw into the trash," says Ella Jordahl, a supervisor at Sodexho Marriott who oversees the lunch program in Phoenix-Talent schools. Marriott serves meals in Phoenix-Talent and Medford district schools -- combined, more than 13,000 students. School cooks say they try to sell kids on good nutrition. "We try to make it look as good as we can to entice them," says Marina Hughes, a cook at the McLoughlin Middle School cafeteria. Despite Hughes' best efforts, however, seventh-grader Adrian Thornton comes away from the kitchen with a plate of fries, breaded chicken strips and pudding. "Sometimes," he says, he thinks about eating fresh vegetables, but not today. Right behind him, classmate Eddie Miller chooses a burrito and chocolate milk. The milk, however, is low-fat, and burritos meet the federal nutrition guidelines, says Jordahl. "Nutrition is up to the students," says seventh-grader Dustin Rotbart as he decides how to spend his $2 lunch allowance. "Students have a choice." Choice is a big part of meal planning for the Central Point district's 4,500 students. Program coordinator Cathy Whalen has been adding what she calls "variety bars" to cafeterias for several years. The carts contain a variety of fruits and vegetables, plus low-fat dressings. Yogurt has been one of the more popular items. Sams Valley Elementary is the latest Central Point district school to get a variety bar. Since the food cart opened in January, more kids have been eating school lunches, says Whalen. School cafeterias also are giving some of their best-selling lunches low-fat makeovers. Pizzas are made with low-fat cheese. Lasagne is loaded with vegetables. Low-fat mayonnaise is standard; butter is out. "That's the big thing, re-working some of the recipes," says Anna Maria Harris, who supervises Marriott's lunches in Medford schools. "It's really things the kids wouldn't notice." Central Point cooks drain the natural juices from the canned fruit they serve and use it in place of water in the whole-wheat bread they bake. Besides the flavor, Whalen says, juice adds to the bread's food value. Whalen is convinced that the nutritional efforts are worthwhile, even if there are some leftover broccoli spears at the end of the day. She says school cafeterias can help youngsters learn to eat better. "I think it's a really good thing for the kids. They see what they should be eating. Every day, year after year, I think it slowly sinks in." Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, Oregon USA