School Cafeteria Research Articles

First Person: The Happy Farm: Igniting the flame of knowledge in children

Teacher Shanshan Wang took the opportunity to transform an empty area near her school into a vegetable and fruit garden with her students, which they dubbed the Happy Farm. Students planted the seeds and tended the plants. They kept journals about the growing plants and worked together to solve problems when they arose. The produce from the garden is served in the school cafeteria. Wang writes that the students value being out in nature and learning through activities rather than just in their classrooms.

Exposure to cooking fumes in cafeteria workers in Korean schools: a pilot study.

This study measured cooking fumes to which workers in school cafeterias may be exposed. The measurement items were respirable dust, formaldehyde, and carbon monoxide. A total of 111 samples were obtained from 55 schools. Data on variables such as school size and daily cooking oil usage were collected. Correlation and association analysis were performed. The median of concentrations of respirable dust was 38.37 µg/m3 (min-max: 20.73-49.71 µg/m3). The concentrations of formaldehyde and carbon monoxide also showed levels that did not exceed 20% for occupational exposure limits. The increase in school size was significantly correlated with the increase in daily cooking oil usage and had a significant correlation with respirable dust concentration (Spearman's correlation coefficient, 0.36; P <0.05). The linear regression test results adjusting for other variables were also similar. Cooking food by frying at high heat using cooking oil can increase the exposure of kitchen workers to respirable dust.

Designing sustainable diet plans by solving triobjective integer programs

AbstractWe present an algorithm for triobjective nonlinear integer programs that combines the $$\varepsilon $$ ε -constrained method with available oracles for biobjective integer programs. We prove that our method is able to detect the nondominated set within a finite number of iterations. Specific strategies to avoid the detection of weakly nondominated points are devised. The method is then used to determine the nondominated solutions of triobjective 0–1 models, built to design nutritionally adequate and healthy diet plans, minimizing their environmental impact. The diet plans refer to menus for school cafeterias and we consider the carbon, water and nitrogen footprints as conflicting objectives to be minimized. Energy and nutrient contents are constrained in suitable ranges suggested by the dietary recommendation of health authorities. Results obtained on two models and on real world data are reported and discussed.

EXPRESS: Groceries or School Cafeterias: How Households Respond to School Nutrition Mandates

The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act (HHFKA) placed strict nutritional mandates on meals served at U.S. public schools. This policy offers a unique opportunity to study household response to a large, exogenous change in healthiness of food available to their children. Did more healthy school meals lead households to substitute towards them, and away from grocery food purchases? Which households were more responsive to the nutritional mandates? And was there any spillover effect on the nutritional quality of their grocery food purchases? We document a meaningful decrease in the quantity of grocery food in response to the HHFKA, and a small decrease in quality. Consistent with substitution towards school meals, more of the quantity decrease is attributable to items likely to be purchased for children and categories traditionally associated with breakfast and lunch (the meals served at school). The HHFKA attracted even greater participation from financially and time constrained households for whom school meals were already important and were now coupled with the additional benefit of healthier food. These findings have important implications for policy makers and researchers, but also for food manufacturers and retailers.

Eat-lancet diet implementation in the school cafeteria in Tokyo, Japan: Adherence and future perspectives

Eat-lancet diet implementation in the school cafeteria in Tokyo, Japan: Adherence and future perspectives

A large-scale investigation of eating behaviors and meal perceptions in Italian primary school cafeterias: The relationship between emotions, meal perception, and food waste

We explored the relationships between meal perception, emotions, and food waste in different age groups in primary school cafeterias. The aims were to assess the effect of age and gender on perceptions of the cafeteria’s meals, emotions, and food waste, and to assess the relationships among food waste, meal perception, and emotions. 1,092 children (5–11 years old [y.o.], 53 % females) completed a questionnaire in nine Italian schools. The main collected variables were the pleasure of eating in the cafeteria, declared liking for different foods, emotional responses to eating in the cafeteria, meal description evaluated as binary choices considering different aspects (duration, presence of noise, perceived comfort, crowding, fun, possibility of movement), and food waste (overall and for different foods). Age but not gender significantly affected meal perception, emotions, and food waste. The general attitude towards eating in the cafeteria was more positive among the youngest children (6–7 y.o.), while it steadily worsened from 8 y.o. on. Pasta, meat, and fruits were consistently the most liked foods, fish, vegetables, and legumes the least. Mealtime in the cafeteria was generally described as noisy and crowded, but also comfortable and fun. Children used negative emojis less to describe the mealtime. Food waste was high: 22 % of children declared leaving food on the plate “frequently” and 8 % “always.” However, lower food waste was associated with a positive emotional status and a positive meal perception. Intervention actions should improve the emotional response and the lunch environmental context in school cafeterias.

Risk Analysis of Small LPG Storage Tank Explosion in the School Cafeteria

This study aimed to determine the best safety measures in case of accidental gas leakage, fire, or explosion in the LPG storage tank of a domestic school kitchen by analyzing the ranges potentially affected by toxicity, overpressure, and radiant heat. Using the Areal Locations of Hazardous Atmospheres (ALOHA) program, the range of damage impact of gas leakage, toxicity owing to VCE and boiling liquid expanding vapor explosion (BLEVE), overpressure, and radiant heat were analyzed for a 1,000 kg-capacity small LPG storage tank installed in the kitchen. It was classified into worst-case and alternative (local weather) scenarios, depending upon the weather conditions, and analyzed by dividing into 50% and 100% storage, as per the difference in storage. The observed risk of toxicity placed the entire school area at risk of death or disability. The risk of overpressure posed a threat to buildings in the entire school area and around the school. The risk of blasts revealed a risk of death up to a distance of 135 m, and the farther regions were at risk of second-degree burns. Additionally, the risks of toxicity and overpressure are affected by weather conditions and LPG storage, whereas blasts are primarily affected by LPG storage with minimal impact from weather conditions.

Barriers to healthy eating practices among school-aged children in Armenia: A qualitative study

The aim of this study was to use diverse perspectives of stakeholders to explore barriers to healthy eating, and attitudes, norms, and practices contributing to unhealthy food choices among school-aged children in Armenia. A qualitative study was carried out through focus group discussions and in-depth interviews, using the Theory of Planned Behavior. The study was conducted in 21 public schools located in three provinces (marzes) of Armenia: Shirak, Lori, and Tavush, and the capital city Yerevan. These study areas were chosen purposefully to target more vulnerable regions and have a geographically diverse sample. Purposive sampling techniques were used to choose the study participants. Five groups were targeted: high school students, school principals, teachers, school cafeteria staff members, and mothers of school children. Overall, 10 focus group discussions, and 51 in-depth interviews were conducted with a total of 94 participants. The study explored two main themes underlying unhealthy eating behaviors among school-aged children in Armenia – suboptimal preferences and restricted opportunities. Three subthemes were identified within the theme of suboptimal preferences: preferences/tastes, attitudes, and role models/normative referent, and another three subthemes within the theme of restricted opportunities: choice restrictions, time constraints, and financial barriers. The study found that most of the constructs of theory of planned behavior, such as general attitudes, preferences, perceived norms and perceived behavioral control, impacted unhealthy eating behaviors of school-aged children in Armenia. The recommendations for practice included enhancing the appeal of healthy foods, highlighting the significance of breakfast and healthy eating in educational activities utilizing role models, expanding and empowering school canteens, including higher grade students in school feeding programs, and extending school breaks to provide sufficient time for healthy eating.

Milk Spoilage Model Predicts that Share Tables Would Not Meaningfully Increase Spoilage and Improved Storage Systems Can Reduce Spoilage

School share tables offer opportunities for food recovery and increased access to healthy foods by allowing students to donate or consume unopened items, such as cartons of milk. However, stakeholders have concerns about temperature abuse potentially causing premature milk spoilage. While previous research showed short ambient temperature abuse of milk (under conditions representing share tables) does not meaningfully impact microbial milk quality, differences across school cafeterias (e.g., ambient temperatures, storage systems, bell schedules, refrigeration temperature) may limit the generalizability of this conclusion. To address this, the overnight refrigeration temperature and the milk's initial contamination were predicted to be the main drivers for milk spoilage. Share tables were predicted to only cause inconsequential microbial quality changes (4 spoiled milk per million served, which would be ≤2 milk cartons spoiled per school year) under short and medium bell schedules (≤125 min of total service), even without temperature control during the lunch period. Under long (221 min) and very long (266 min) bell schedules, share tables with ambient temperature storage were predicted to have higher milk spoilage (19 and 42 spoiled milk cartons per million served, respectively), and adding storage systems was predicted to reduce the decline in milk quality (12 and 24 spoiled milk cartons per million served, respectively). These results provide a resource to support science-based decision-making for the inclusion of milk in school cafeteria share tables, ultimately working to reduce food waste and address food insecurity.

Relative validity of an intelligent ordering system to estimate dietary intake among university students from a medical school in Shanghai, China

BackgroundDietary assessment methods have limitations in capturing real-time eating behaviour accurately. Equipped with automated dietary-data-collection capabilities, the “intelligent ordering system” (IOS) has potential applicability in obtaining long-term consecutive, relatively detailed on-campus dietary records among university students with little resource consumption. We investigated (1) the relative validity of IOS-derived nutrient/food intakes compared to those from the 7-day food diary (7DFD); (2) whether including a supplemental food frequency questionnaire (SFFQ) improves IOS accuracy; and (3) sex differences in IOS dietary intake estimation.MethodsMedical students (n = 221; age = 22.2 ± 2.4 years; 38.5% male and 61.5% female) completed the 7DFD and SFFQ. During the consecutive 7-day survey period, students weighed and photographed each meal before and after consumption. Then, students reviewed their 3-month diet and completed the SFFQ, which includes eight underprovided school-canteen food items (e.g., dairy, fruits, nuts). Meanwhile, 9385 IOS dietary data entries were collected. We used Spearman coefficients and linear regression models to estimate the associations among the different dietary intake assessment methods. Individual- and group-level agreement was assessed using the Wilcoxon signed-rank test, cross-classification, and Bland‒Altman analysis.ResultsIOS mean daily energy, protein, fat, and carbohydrate intake estimations were significantly lower (-15-20%) than those of the 7DFD. The correlation coefficients varied from 0.52 (for added sugar) to 0.88 (for soybeans and nuts), with fruits (0.37) and dairy products (0.29) showing weaker correlations. Sixty-two (milk and dairy products) to 97% (soybeans and nuts) of participants were classified into the same or adjacent dietary intake distribution quartile using both methods. The energy and macronutrient intake differences between the IOS + SFFQ and 7DFD groups decreased substantially. The separate fruit intake measurements from each assessment method did not significantly differ from each other (p > 0.05). IOS and IOS + SFFQ regression models generally yielded higher R2 values for males than for females.ConclusionDespite estimation differences, the IOS can be reliable for medical student dietary habit assessment. The SFFQ is useful for measuring consumption of foods that are typically unavailable in school cafeterias, improving the overall dietary evaluation accuracy. The IOS assessment was more accurate for males than for females.

Prevalence and Correlates of a Positive Screening for Eating Disorders: A Cross-Sectional Study among Children in Lebanese Schools

ABSTRACT Background: Eating disorders (ED) are one of the most common psychiatric illnesses that may lead to physical and psychosocial morbidity in children. Our study aimed to determine the prevalence and factors associated with a positive screening for ED among children and young adolescents in multiple Lebanese schools. Method: This cross-sectional study included a convenience sample of 253 students (45.5% females; 76.3% Syrian refugees) aged between 8 and 13 years and recruited from Lebanese private schools. Students were interviewed between February and June 2018 to collect information about sociodemographic factors and health characteristics. Logistic regression analyses were performed, using the SCOFF questionnaire for screening ED as the dependent variable. Results: Among the students, 36.4% tested positive for SCOFF. Logistic regression analyses revealed significant associations between a positive screening for ED and the following factors: being between 8 and 9 years old (p = 0.029), obesity (p = 0.010), experiencing fatigue (p = 0.017), encountering a stressful accident (p = 0.027), undergoing changes in residence, school, or country (p = 0.01), consuming meals from restaurants ≥3/week (p = 0.013), consuming ≤2 fruits/week (p = 0.01) and consuming ≥5 eggs/week (p = 0.01). Approximately 13.4% of students were underweight, while 24.5% were classified as overweight or obese. One-third (32.1%) of students spent between 2 and 5 h/day using digital devices. Half of the students (54.1%) purchased fast food ≥3/week from school cafeterias, and over three-quarters reported fluctuating their food intake in response to emotions such as sadness, fear, anger, or happiness. Conclusion: These findings emphasize the importance of early detection and intervention in addressing abnormal eating behaviors among children.

Analisis Pengetahuan Perilaku Hidup Bersih dan Sehat (PHBS) pada Anak Usia Sekolah di SMP 1 Methodist Kutalimbaru Tahun 2024

Prevention of sickness, establishment of a healthy, disease-free environment, and enhancement of physical health are the goals of a clean and healthy living (PHBS) initiative in the school setting, which is a collaborative effort between students and teachers. Schools may play a crucial role in educating the public about the significance of living a healthy, clean lifestyle. The health of kids may be greatly improved by doing simple things like using soap to wash hands and eating nutritious food from the school cafeteria. In order to have a better idea of what elementary school-aged kids know about PHBS, or clean and healthy living behaviors, this study is collecting data. This study used a descriptive quantitative research strategy. Researchers at Kutalimbaru 1 Methodist Middle School in Deli Serdang Regency administered a questionnaire to students in the fall of 2023 to gauge their level of familiarity with the concept of clean and healthy living behaviors (PHBS). Thirty participants were surveyed for this research, with ten participants drawn from each of the three grade levels (Seventh, Eighth, and Ninth). According to the interview results, most students at SMP 1 Methodist Kutalimbaru have a good understanding of Clean and Healthy Living Behavior (PHBS). However, when it comes to actually practicing what they've learned, there are some big gaps. For example, 18 out of 30 students still don't wash their hands before and after eating, and 22 out of 30 students still don't eat hygienic food, which can lead to infectious diseases like diarrhea. In order to implement PHBS in school-aged children, support from parents, teachers, and school facilities is necessary. Keywords: Knowledge, Clean and Healthy Living Behavior, School Age Children

Empowering Students to Create Climate-Friendly Schools

In Germany, there are over 32,000 schools, representing great potential for climate protection. On the one hand, this applies to educational work, as understanding the effects of climate change and measures to reduce GHG emissions is an important step to empower students with knowledge and skills. On the other hand, school buildings are often in bad condition, energy is wasted, and the possibilities for using renewable energies are hardly used. In our “Schools4Future” project, we enabled students and teachers to draw up their own CO2 balances, identify weaknesses in the building, detect wasted electricity, and determine the potential for using renewable energies. Emissions from the school cafeteria, school trips, and paper consumption could also be identified. The fact that the data can be collected by the students themselves provides increased awareness of the contribution made to the climate balance by the various school areas. The most climate-friendly school emits 297 kg whilst the school with the highest emissions emits over one ton CO2 per student and year. Our approach is suitable to qualify students in the sense of citizen science, carry out a scientific investigation, experience self-efficacy through one’s own actions, and engage politically regarding their concerns.

State school catering in Italy during the COVID-19 pandemic: a qualitative study

The complex value of school meals for children and families is well documented. In Italy, school cafeterias have been an instrument of social policy since the end of the Second World War. Thereafter, school cafeterias have acquired several functions in the areas of children's health and wellbeing, education, social inclusion, support to local and quality agriculture, and environmental sustainability. In particular, the goal of a nutritious and balanced diet has been emphasized in recent decades, since malnutrition and food insecurity have been increasing in Italian society. During the pandemic, Italy was the first European country to implement a nationwide lockdown and one of the high-income countries where schools closed for the longest period. In this work, we use in-depth interviews with representatives of the school catering service, both from the major catering companies and the biggest municipalities, to analyze what happened in the management of the Italian school catering service during the pandemic crisis. In addition, a review of public recommendations issued during the pandemic has made it possible to analyze their compliance with the state guidelines for school catering and food education. The results highlight how the system reacted extremely slowly to the crisis and how the measures taken led to a deterioration of the value that has always been attributed to state school cafeterias, especially in terms of children's food security and environmental sustainability.

Transmission of bla NDM in Enterobacteriaceae among animals, food and human

ABSTRACT Despite carbapenems not being used in animals, carbapenem-resistant Enterobacterales (CRE), particularly New Delhi metallo-β-lactamase-producing CRE (NDM-CRE), are prevalent in livestock. Concurrently, the incidence of human infections caused by NDM-CRE is rising, particularly in children. Although a positive association between livestock production and human NDM-CRE infections at the national level was identified, the evidence of direct transmission of NDM originating from livestock to humans remains largely unknown. Here, we conducted a cross-sectional study in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, to examine the prevalence of NDM-CRE in chickens and pigs along the breeding–slaughtering–retail chains, in pork in cafeterias of schools, and in colonizations and infections from children's hospital and examined the correlation of NDM-CRE among animals, foods and humans. Overall, the bla NDM increases gradually along the chicken and pig breeding (4.70%/2.0%) –slaughtering (7.60%/22.40%) –retail (65.56%/34.26%) chains. The slaughterhouse has become a hotspot for cross-contamination and amplifier of bla NDM. Notably, 63.11% of pork from the school cafeteria was positive for bla NDM. The prevalence of bla NDM in intestinal and infection samples from children's hospitals was 21.68% and 19.80%, respectively. whole genome sequencing (WGS) analysis revealed the sporadic, not large-scale, clonal spread of NDM-CRE along the chicken and pig breeding–slaughtering–retail chain, with further spreading via IncX3-bla NDM plasmid within each stage of whole chains. Clonal transmission of NDM-CRE is predominant in children's hospitals. The IncX3-bla NDM plasmid was highly prevalent among animals and humans and accounted for 57.7% of Escherichia coli and 91.3% of Klebsiella pneumoniae. Attention should be directed towards the IncX3 plasmid to control the transmission of bla NDM between animals and humans.

Cooking oil fume exposure and Lung-RADS distribution among school cafeteria workers of South Korea.

Cooking oil fumes (COFs) from cooking with hot oil may contribute to the pathogenesis of lung cancer. Since 2021, occupational lung cancer for individual cafeteria workers has been recognized in South Korea. In this study, we aimed to identify the distribution of lung-imaging reporting and data system (Lung-RADS) among cafeteria workers and to determine factors related to Lung-RADS distribution. We included 203 female participants who underwent low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) screening at a university hospital and examined the following variables: age, smoking status, second-hand smoke, height, weight, and years of service, mask use, cooking time, heat source, and ventilation. We divided all participants into culinary and non-culinary workers. Binomial logistic regression was conducted to determine the risk factors on LDCT of Category ≥ 3, separately for the overall group and the culinary group. In this study, Lung-RADS-positive occurred in 17 (8.4%) individuals, all of whom were culinary workers. Binary logistic regression analyses were performed and no variables were found to have a significant impact on Lung-RADS results. In the subgroup analysis, the Lung-RADS-positive, and -negative groups differed only in ventilation. Binary logistic regression showed that the adjusted odds ratio (aOR) of the Lung-RADS-positive group for inappropriate ventilation at the workplace was 14.89 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 3.296-67.231) compared to appropriate ventilation as the reference, and the aOR for electric appliances at home was 4.59 (95% CI: 1.061-19.890) using liquid fuel as the reference. The rate of Lung-RADS-positive was significantly higher among culinary workers who performed actual cooking tasks than among nonculinary workers. In addition, appropriate ventilation at the workplace made the LDCT results differ. More research is needed to identify factors that might influence LDCT findings among culinary workers, including those in other occupations.

EAT-Lancet diet implementation in the context of Japan: Theory to practice at the school cafeteria

EAT-Lancet diet implementation in the context of Japan: Theory to practice at the school cafeteria

Time and temperature abuse of milk in conditions representing a school cafeteria share table does not meaningfully reduce microbial quality

Share tables (ST) are tables or stations in school cafeterias where students can return unopened foods and beverages, providing an opportunity to access these items at no cost. Currently, research suggests that milk is among the most wasted items in breakfast and lunch programs in the United States. Share tables present a simple solution for reducing milk waste, but research is needed to understand the microbial spoilage potential of milk in ST. To this end, uninoculated milk cartons and milk cartons inoculated with 2 to 3 log10(cfu/mL) Pseudomonas poae, a fast-growing psychrotroph, was exposed to ambient temperature during winter (mean temperature = 20.3°C) and summer (23.1°C) for 125 min, repeated over 5 d (the length of a school week). Microbial counts in the inoculated milk cartons increased linearly, exceeding the spoilage threshold of 6.0 log10(cfu/mL) after d 3 and after d 4 in the winter and summer season trials, respectively. In the winter trial, the microbial counts for uninoculated milk cartons never exceeded the lower limit of detection, 2.31 log10(cfu/mL), and in the summer trials, microbial counts never reached the spoilage threshold, indicating that initial contamination is a driving factor of microbial milk spoilage. Regardless of sharing status or seasonality, the greatest changes in counts for inoculated milk cartons occurred during overnight refrigeration, ranging from 0.56 to 1.4 log10(cfu/mL), while during the share table ranged from no observable change up to 0.29 log10(cfu/mL), emphasizing that school nutrition personnel should focus efforts on tightly controlling refrigeration temperatures and returning milk to refrigeration as soon as possible. A previously developed model for school cafeteria share tables was adapted to understand the typical residence time of milk in a simulated cafeteria with an ambient temperature share table for the summer and winter seasons over 1,000 wk. Milk was predicted to have a very short mean residence time (85 min) regardless of sharing status or season, with 99.8% of milk consumed, discarded, or donated within the first 2 d. As a result, only 3 out of 451,410 and 6 out of 451,410 simulated milks spoiled in the winter and summer seasons, respectively. The data generated here can be used to inform science-based decision-making for including milk in share tables, or applied to any system where one might have to accept short-term unrefrigerated storage of milk to meet a waste reduction or food security goal.

A School of Local Fish on the School Lunch Menu

School cafeterias in the Canary Islands use mainly seafood that is imported from far-away industrial fishing operations, even though there are several nearby fishing fleets. The nearby fleets fish for tuna the traditional way, catching them one by one off of mostly small-scale fishing boats, with the hook and line technique. These boats are eco-friendly, but they tend to export their tuna—several thousand tons each year—to mainland Spain or other countries. So, in 2018, we started a project to supply local tuna and other fish steaks to about a dozen Canary Islands school cafeterias, in an attempt to reduce fish exports and imports. This is good for the environment because it decreases the amount of fuel used to move food from place to place. We hope our work will not only help school kids to eat healthier, but also improve the eating habits and health of the entire local population.

PRECONDITIONS FOR THE "FARM-TO-SCHOOL" MODEL FROM STAKEHOLDERS' PERSPECTIVE: THE CASE OF KLAIPEDA REGION

Farm-to-school programs represent a global movement aimed at bolstering childhood nutrition, enhancing the quality of school meals, and empowering of local markets. However, these initiatives exhibit significant diversity in their implementation strategies across different countries and remain variably defined in both research and program evaluation literature. In the context of the Klaipeda region project, Farm-to-school programs could be conceptualized as initiatives centred around local or regional food procurement, alongside agriculture and nutrition-based educational endeavours. These activities would encompass the provision of locally sourced foods in schools, the facilitation of educational sessions, and the establishment of school gardens, all aimed at bridging the gap between educational institutions, local farmers, food producers, and distributors. The overarching goal is to integrate fresh, locally sourced food into both school cafeterias and curricula. The research findings, based on interviews conducted in the Klaipeda region with municipality specialists, shed light on the specific nuances of possible Farm-to-school program implementation in this region. Key takeaways from the responses include the commitment to regulatory compliance with Green Public Procurement rules, with a strong emphasis on sourcing food produced within Lithuania. Despite their dedication to supporting local agriculture and providing fresh, locally sourced food, these programmes grapple with challenges related to quantity, cost, administrative hurdles, and procurement policies. Decision-making processes are influenced by a diverse array of stakeholders, including municipal bodies and the broader community.