P148 - Culinary Training of School Food Service Workers with a Celebrity Chef

Abstract

Background (Background, Rationale, Prior Research, and/or Theory): Professional development to improve culinary skills, promote smarter lunchroom techniques (SL) and knowledge of 2015 Dietary Guidelines (DG) is suggested to help workers plan and prepare meals that are healthy and acceptable to students. Objective: To examine satisfaction and perceived learning from professional development of culinary skills by a celebrity chef, promotion of whole fruits and under-consumed vegetable subgroups (UCVS), SL, foods to increase or decrease from DG, and plan and conduct event using training theme. Study Design, Setting, Participants, Intervention: Nonexperimental, one group, post only, plan to recruit 90 foodservice workers to one of three regional trainings; participants were consented and completed an anonymous 18-item online Qualtrics survey after culinary training by chef in school cafeterias. Outcome Measures and Analysis: Responses were analyzed descriptively for participant characteristics, satisfaction with professional development program, perceived learning, confidence with techniques, perceived knowledge, knowledge of DG messages, inspiration by significant referent, follow-up implementation of event with student reach. Results: Recruitment was 67% of goal, 78% of registrants participated in training. Participants were women, including, 47% cafeteria managers, 32% foodservice directors, 17% food-prep cooks. Three-quarters reported learning helpful culinary techniques, ways to promote UCVS, SL techniques, were confident with techniques and inspired by chef to use new techniques/recipes, with 78% overall satisfaction. All correctly listed one dark green vegetable, 87% listed two; 100% correctly listed two vegetables from red/orange vegetable subgroup, and >95% knew DG to limit saturated fat, trans fat, added sugars, and increase whole fruit, dark green vegetables, whole grains, beans/peas. Eighty-five percent knew to increase lower fat dairy foods. Only 13% created event based on training, but events reached 3,553 students. Conclusions and Implications: Training by a celebrity chef was a popular venue for professional development; more recruitment efforts and follow-up with registrants to boost attendance, and follow-up with event planning might extend reach of the program. Funding: USDA Team Nutrition.