 Meal Planning in Rural Alaska Tanya Dube, SNA 3 Kitchen Manager Bristol Bay Borough School Naknek, AK

About Me  Wife, Mother, Student, Cook…  A.A.S. in Early Childhood Education  Background in Restaurant Management  AKSNA Membership Chair

I Can’t See Russia from my House Bristol Bay is the Red Salmon Capital of the World

Demographics  Bristol Bay Borough School District, Naknek, AK  Student population of 125 students Pre-K-12  10 elders  57% Free/Reduced  Daily meal participation of 78% (except Fridays)

High Food & Transportation Costs Bristol Bay is only accessible by air or seasonal barge

Why I Do My Job  I was dissatisfied with the school lunch menu  Too Many Processed Meals/Lack of Variety  Stereotypical Atmosphere (Grouchy Lunch Lady)  Students Deserve Better  For many of my students the only complete meal they have during the day is the one they get at school so they deserve the best I can give them.

Increasing Participation  Students are customers and deserve to be treated as such.  Offer service with a smile  Serve quality meals that are consistent and served at the appropriate temperature.  What do they like? Ask them!  Take cultural needs into consideration.  Be aware of food allergies and dietary restrictions

Offer Versus Serve  Allows students K-12 to make choices  If they choose it they are more likely to consume it  Reduces waste

Principles of Menu Planning  1.Balance  Spicy or salty with bland, savory with sweet…  2. Emphasize variety  Soups, Casseroles, Mexican, Italian, Asian, Breakfast for Lunch…  3. Add contrast.  Crisp with soft, variety of shapes/textures,  4. Think about color.  Sliced turkey, brown rice, diced pears, steamed cauliflower, lowfat milk  5. Consider eye appeal.  Presentation matters Adapted from:

Recipe & Menu Planning Resources Prepared by: Tanya Dube for Team Up Nutrition Workshop June 2015 Healthier Kansas Menus Cycle Menus and Recipes): eat.org/SNP/SNP_Menus/SNP_Resources_Healthier_Kansas_Menus_8-week_Cycle_ htmhttp:// eat.org/SNP/SNP_Menus/SNP_Resources_Healthier_Kansas_Menus_8-week_Cycle_ htm Home Grown: Menus of Wisconsin: Iowa Gold Star (Cycle Menus and Recipes): programs/quick-links-nutrition/learning-tools-nutrition/iowa-gold-star-cycle-menushttps:// programs/quick-links-nutrition/learning-tools-nutrition/iowa-gold-star-cycle-menus Smarter Lunchrooms: USDA Food Buying Guide: USDA Food Buying Guide Calculator: USDA Mixing Bowl: USDA Recipes: Vermont FEED: Whole Grain Resource from USDA:

Cooking from Scratch A Labor of Love USDA Recipes B-14 and D-30 using Alaska Grown Barley

Why Salad Bars?  Research shows that incorporating salad bars into school lunches increases children’s consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables.  Salad bars profoundly shift the typical school lunch by offering students not only variety but also choice. Schools with salad bars offer a wider variety of vegetables and fruits than other schools.  Through repeat exposure, encouragement to try unfamiliar foods, and education, children respond by trying new items, incorporating greater variety into their diets, and eating more fruits and vegetables each day.  As a result of these early, positive experiences, students develop palates for a lifetime of healthy eating. Source:

Fruit and Vegetable Bar Many of my students don’t have access to fresh fruits and vegetables at home. Whole fruits are $2.99/lb., peaches, grapes, & strawberries range from $5.99-$8.99/lb. Fresh vegetables range from $3.99-$6.99/lb. and bagged salad is $5.99

Smarter Lunchrooms Attended Training January 2015  By using simple low-cost to no-cost changes you can increase participation and guide students to make healthier choices.  Use attractive menu boards  Display whole fruits in attractive bowl  Salad bar is child height friendly with appropriate sized utensils  Colorful posters showing healthy foods are on display in the dining area

Room for Improvement  Enhance salad bar by adding ingredients (M/MA and grain) for students to build a fully reimbursable meal  Develop cycle menu based on student preferences  Offer 2 different choices of fruits and vegetables on days salad bar isn’t in use  Increase breakfast participation

“It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men.” - Frederick Douglass Photo Source:

Thank-You Contact Info: I am grateful to have the support of my school administration. I would also like to thank Alaska Child Nutrition Programs, USDA, and NFSMI for this opportunity.