A recent investment could make students’ lunches healthier.
Invest Nova Scotia has put $160,000 towards a pilot program to add salad bars to schools across Lunenburg County.
Jeff DeWolfe, Programs Director with South Shore Regional Centre for Education, says the project came after they realized their cafeterias were in decline.
“Our cafeterias were struggling,” he said.
“They weren’t meeting food nutrition guidelines, and they were struggling to stay afloat. So we were at a cross roads, we needed to do something, or we may have got to the point where we weren’t able to have food services for our students.”
On Wednesday, the program’s fifth salad bar was added to Hebbville Academy.
https://twitter.com/edwardhalverson/status/1176873605671600129
Bluenose Academy, West Northfield Elementary, Chester Area Middle School and New Germany Rural High have already received the other four.
The pilot will allow the SSRCE to see if a healthy foods program like this is feasible, and whether or not it will expand into other schools in the future.
“We do know that in order to serve healthy food and run the salad bars, we are going to need more staff,” he said, “But that is all part of the challenge and cost pressure of this project.”
The $160,000 contribution will help fund five part time jobs to run and maintain the salad bars.
https://twitter.com/edwardhalverson/status/1176880267019083778
The pilot will run for the next year as part of the first phase, serving a total student population of 1,400. If successful, phase two will see salad bars added to the remaining 23 schools in the South Shore with a student population of 6,600.
A third phase would see the project implimented to all schools in the province.
Reported by: Cody McEachern
Twitter: @CodyInHiFi
E-mail: mceachern.cody@radioabl.ca
