A Chefs Guide to Healthier, Kid-Friendly Foods

By Renee Zonka, MBA, RD, CEC, CHE, Contributing Editor

Its said that every cloud has a silver lining, and the new focus on nutrition is that silver lining in the childhood obesity cloud that threatens the future of our next generation. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), childhood obesity has more than tripled in the last 30 years. Unless that is reversed, the children today might be the first to experience a lower life expectancy than their parents.

For years, media has been abuzz about obesity, particularly childhood obesity, pointing to culprits like high-fructose corn syrup (and added sugars in general), video games, lack of exercise, poor diets, changing family dynamics and insufficient funding for school lunch programs. In fact, all of these factors are involved.

However, the catalyst that has turned talk into action has been first lady Michelle Obama. Her multi-pronged Childhood Obesity Action Plan, introduced in 2010, calls on the food and foodservice industries to produce healthier foods for children instead of the nutritionally empty, calorie-laden choices that tend to dominate todays marketplace. Her Chefs Move to Schools" program, in which Chicagos Kendall College participates, brings chefs together to adopt schools and work with teachers, parents, school nutritionists and administrators to educate children and show that nutrition can be fun.

And one of the most-important developments this year has been the introduction of the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, which have an increased focus on obesity. The USDA also launched a new healthy eating symbol, Choose My Plate," to replace the food pyramid, which most found too complicated. Elegantly simple, it graphically shows that the largest part of our diet should be vegetables and grains, with smaller proportions of meat, fruit and dairy.

School foodservice

The new standards are also reflected in the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010" (whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/Child_Nutrition_Fact_Sheet_12_10_10.pdf) which mandates new school-meal plans designed to meet the nutrition needs of the nearly 32 million children who take part in lunch and breakfast programs. Once fully enacted, directives include:

  Minimum and maximum calories are established. For lunch, that means 550 to 650 calories for kindergarten through 5th grade; 600 to 700 for grades 6 through 8; and 750 to 850 for grades 9 through 12.

  Decrease starchy vegetables, such as white potatoes, corn, peas and lima beans, to one cup per week.

  Decrease sodium, over the next 10 years, from 1600 mg per meal to approximately 740 mg, with slightly lower levels for younger children.

  Increase grains from 1.5 to 2 servings per day, with at least half being whole grains.

  Include one cup of flavored or unflavored, fat-free milk, or unflavored 1% milk.

  A serving of fruit be offered daily at breakfast and lunch, and that two servings of vegetables be offered daily at lunch.

  Increase legumes and dark-green or orange vegetables to 1 to 2 cups per week.

  Serve 1.5 to 2.5 oz. of meat or meat alternative per meal.

  Minimize trans fats, and reduce total saturated fat to less than 10% per meal.

Schools currently receive $2.72 from the federal government for each child on the free-lunch program. Once fully enacted, if schools follow the new requirements they will get an increase of six cents per meal, which amounts to a little more than 2%.  It wont be an easy challenge to meet, but when the number of meals served is factored in, 2% can be a significant amount of money. Its an incentive that will, hopefully, help to change the face of school foodservice.

It will definitely be a challenge, but tools are available to help with the transition, and more are on the way. And taste doesnt have to be sacrificed for health. Favorite foods dont have to be scrapped, but merely reformulated to meet the new guidelines. For example, rather than remove tacos and burritos from the menu, substitute lowfat tortillas and soft tacos. Serve black beans and whole-grain rice on the side and you have a winner. Kids like it because its familiar, yet the fat content has been considerably reduced while fiber has been increased. With pizza, use whole-wheat dough, increase the amount of vegetable toppings and substitute skim mozzarella cheese.

The USA Rice Federation, Arlington, VA, with its Healthy Rice Bowls" program, provides a wealth of free recipes and training materials, including a master recipe, called 3 Steps to a Healthy Meal." The bowls can be adapted to a wide range of ethnic fare,  and when prepared with whole-grain rice, low-fat protein and lower-sodium sauces, theyre as tasty as they are healthy. The USA Rice Federation tested the rice bowl concept with children of diverse ages and ethnic backgrounds. Youngsters especially enjoyed Italian, Asian and Mexican flavor profiles. In addition, the winner of this years annual Healthy Rice Bowls" competition for K-12 school menu planners was Cindy Ruffin, director of child nutrition, St. Charles Parish Public Schools in southeast Louisiana, who developed sweet and spicy chicken, Thai curry, and sushi-themed rice bowls. Tested at a local high school, these offerings boosted school lunch participation by 24%.

Manufacturers, like Tyson Foods, Springdale, AR, with its K-12 program, are also responding with products that emphasize flavor and new ethnic flavor profiles enjoyed by kids. One example is a product from Tyson called Wokin Orange All-in-One Entrée," which contains fully cooked, dark-meat chicken strips in a spicy orange sauce. During development, many of Tysons school breakfast and lunch foods are tested by students as part of the companys Kid Tested, Kid Approved" program, so acceptance is pretty much guaranteed. Some of those products include whole-grain breaded chicken nuggets, chicken burgers and breakfast patties, all with less than 200 calories and 10 grams of fat.

There are already success stories that serve as success models. Karen Kovach, director of the Georgetown Independent School District Nutrition Services (GISDNS), Williamson County, TX, for example, created a program that features only whole-grain breads, brown rice and whole-grain pasta dishes, as well as eight servings of fresh fruits and vegetables daily, and eliminates fried foods completely. Fast-food lookalikes please kids palates, but at GISDNS, they contain 30% less calories and fat. Often, this is accomplished by baking frozen items, such as fish sticks, fries or skim mozzarella sticks, at a high heat to get the crispiness associated with frying without the added fat.

GISDNS hosts taste tests with parents and students, as well as an annual Kids Culinary Competition, to create new menus. Going one step further, GISDNS works with the WilCo Wellness Alliancealso of Williamson County, TXto promote healthy menus in local restaurants and onsite employee foodservice.

Adjusting the options

According to the National Restaurant Association (NRA), Washington, D.C., 49% of every food dollar goes to meals prepared away from home. Over the last couple of generations, going out to eat has gone from being a special occasion" that happened a few times a year to an almost daily event. For many people today, eating a home-cooked meal with the family has become the special occasion."

The foodservice industry recognizes its role, and is stepping up to the plate. Leaders from NRA have joined forces with the Produce Marketing Association (PMA), Newark, DE, and the International Foodservice Distributors Association (IFDA), McLean, VA, on a multi-phase project to increase the use of fresh produce in foodservice. NRA also supports Lets Move," and is a partner in the Chefs Move to Schools" initiative.

So when it comes to children, how do restaurants move beyond chicken nuggets, mac-and-cheese and hamburgers? Again, its about making these favorites healthier in a way that may even be invisible to their young patrons.

Substituting whole grains in one easy option, and according to a study from ConAgra Foods, Omaha, NE, new technology in whole-wheat flour can produce a softer texture that is well accepted by children, yet provides all the advantages of the whole grain. The Panera Kids menu at bakery-café chain Panera Breads features sandwiches made with white-whole-wheat bread. And Bertuccis Italian Restaurant units have made a commitment to make kids pizzas with a whole-wheat crust.

Restaurants are also adding healthy finger foods and more salads to their kids menus, as well as entrées that are appealing, healthier and sized appropriately, e.g., approximately 2 oz. of protein, a half cup of pasta and vegetables, one small piece of fresh fruit and a cup of low-fat or nonfat milk. Some examples are fresh fruit with yogurt dip; grilled cheese on wheat bread with fresh vegetables and dip; peanut butter and jelly on whole-wheat bread with fresh fruit; fresh tossed salad with a choice of low-fat dressing; and baked chicken with mashed sweet potatoes and vegetables.

Mrs. Obamas initiative is also having a profound effect on the packaged foods offered by retailers. Wal-Mart, Bentonville, AR, the worlds largest retailer, with $405 billion in net sales in 2010, is wielding its clout with a five-year plan, announced this year, to lower the salt, fat and sugar in thousands of its packaged goods, including kid-friendly products, and to drop prices on fresh fruit, vegetables and whole grains. This will force manufacturers to get on board and change the face of packaged food forever.

 A culinary education

Culinary schools, one of the prime training grounds for foodservice professionals at every point in the continuumfrom packaged-food formulation and purchasing to menu development and hands-on preparationhave a significant role to play, and many, both large and small, are stepping up to the challenge. Culinary training and nutrition can no longer stand alone.

For example, Kendall Colleges School of Education, which specializes in early-childhood education, recently launched a culinary nutrition concentration in its bachelors degree program.

Coursework includes nutrition for various ages (i.e., prenatal through age 5 and age 6 through adolescence) as well as work on community nutrition. Johnson and Wales University, Providence, RI, also offers a Culinary Nutrition program designed to produce chefs who know how to make nutritious food.

 Thoughts for the future

Were already seeing signs of what the future may hold. Mobile produce stores are serving urban food deserts" where families have lacked easy access to fresh produce. Neighborhood gardens are helping children learn about growing food and appreciating the clean taste of fresh fruit and vegetables.

Well continue to see a push for lower sodium in prepared foods. Replacing salt with intriguing ethnic flavors, increasing acidity and focusing on umami all help decrease the need for salt. The continued evolution of technology in processing and freezing are also likely to improve flavors, reducing the need for added salt and fat.

Mrs. Obamas campaign has really hit home with chefs. Feeding people is what we do. Everyone is talking about sustainability, and nutrition is a huge component of that. As Julian Cribb, author of The Coming Famine," said: Chefs set the fashion of food. Great chefs create menus, other restaurants follow and these trends flow through to packaged goods and consumers. The intellectual leadership of the worlds diet rests with the chefs."

Renee Zonka, MBA, RD, CEC, CHE, is dean of Chicagos Kendall College School of Culinary Arts, where she is responsible for the strategic direction and operation of the schools educational programs. A registered dietitian and chef, she also leads the Kendalls nutrition initiative. She joined Kendall College in 2007 as associate dean and became managing director in 2010, before being named dean in 2011. Named Registered Young Dietitian of the Year by the American Dietetic Association, she is a consultant and speaker, as well as an author on topics where culinary and nutrition intersect.

Poised to Break Through

According to the May 2011 report, Kids Food and Beverage Market in the U.S." from Packaged Facts, Rockville, MD, the market for healthier kids food is on the brink of a breakthrough," with 40% growth expected from 2010 to 2015.

The kids food market gained attention after the turn of the century, but never really had a fair chance to gain momentum, as the recession entered the picture," says Don Montuori, publisher, Packaged Facts. In 2009 and 2010, a number of marketers turned up the heat, and started getting aggressive in this very important food-marketing segment. We forecast that the next several years going into 2015 will mark a period of tremendous growth in the sales and development of food and beverage products marketed and designed for children."

Packaged Facts estimates that retail sales of kids foods hit the $10 billion mark at the end of 2010. This includes sales from all retail channels and reflects an increase of 25% from 2005.

The company estimates that 40% ($4 billion) of this market in 2010 had a discernible degree of health, or a better-for-you element," including products with claims such as made with whole wheat" and lower sugar."