National School Lunch Week
Fueling minds, nourishing potential—school lunches aren't just meals; they're key ingredients for young aspirations to thrive.
Partner with schools to showcase nutritious, kid-approved menu innovations and celebrate the role of quality school meals in student wellness and academic success.
- Behind-the-scenes kitchen takeovers: feature school cafeteria staff preparing healthy meals
- Student taste-test challenges: highlight new menu items and gather feedback from real young consumers
- Celebrity lunch ambassador spotlights: partner with local influencers/athletes to inspire kids about nutrition
- Parent guides: tips for supporting school nutrition initiatives and extending healthy eating at home
National School Lunch Week goes a bit further back in history than many people might expect. The event was established in 1962 when it was proclaimed by US President John F. Kennedy as a way of promoting the importance of a healthy lunch in the life of a child. The day was meant to act as a reminder of how a lunch impacts a child both inside and outside the classroom.
It was less than twenty years earlier, in 1946, that US President Harry S. Truman instituted the National School Lunch Act that worked to ensure every child had a healthy lunch. Foodservice in schools in the US had started years prior, but this action by President Truman made it official and provided federal funding for it.
Today, lunches served in schools are commonplace and made viable through federal financial assistance. National School Lunch Week aims to celebrate the federal National School Lunch Program that provides food for millions of children in school every day.
Each year, National School Lunch Week offers a theme that can inform the direction of activities. Past themes have included:
Celebrate Lunch All Week Long
Teachers, administrators and parents can get involved with National School Lunch Week by making some special efforts to decorate the lunch room and turn it into something beautiful! Perhaps the decorations could go along with the theme and kids could be given treats that make the lunches this week extra special. Maybe the kids could even be given extra time for play and fun during lunch this week.
Invite Special Guests to School Lunch
Make everything a bit more interesting by inviting a news anchor, musician, sports star or some other local celebrity to join the kids during school lunch. This is a fun way to provide inspiration and offer unique experiences for the children to have fun, learn something, and make a role model more accessible.
Offer Menu Tastings
Offering a school lunch is one thing, but getting the kids to eat it may be something else entirely! National School Lunch Week might be the ideal time to debut some new menu items and find out how the kids feel about them. Treat it like a fun adventure – and hopefully a nutritional one too!