School lunch's healthier than ever

I am writing in response to Andrea Rachita’s Dec. 28 letter. In Olympia, the lunch program has come a long way from even 10 years ago, when deep fried, breaded items where common. Now we no longer deep fry our food and have increased the amount of fresh fruits and vegetables we serve. By working with local farmers and educational farming programs we provide students with access to seasonal produce.

Olympia School District has three tiers of lunches, with different options available to students at different grade levels. Elementary school kids get milk, fruit, a salad bar and a hot lunch prepared by the main kitchen at Olympia High School. Along with milk, fruit and the salad bar, middle school students can get either a hot lunch or a sandwich with meat or veggies. Snacks can also be bought separately. High school students have many options; from hot lunch or a made-to-order sandwich to pizza, burgers, a salad bar, milk, fruit and snacks available to purchase. Many families don’t have the time or resources to pack an equally nutritious and affordable lunch.

Of course, sugar is a problem in America and in some lunch programs it’s an issue, but at OSD great progress has been made to replace pop machines with healthier options. Even in the winter we offer a large variety of fresh fruit and organic vegetables.

I believe as an OSD lunch lady I am helping our kids make good choices when and where they can.

This story was originally published January 17, 2017 at 6:24 PM with the headline "School lunch's healthier than ever."