Make an Impact on School Nutrition!

Florida orange juice provides essential vitamins and minerals to students and is loved by kids everywhere, so it is no surprise that Florida orange juice can be a delicious staple for any school's foodservice program, particularly at breakfast.

Nutrition News

We are seeing more and more state and local initiatives being implemented to eliminatefoods that do not contribute to a healthy diet. And school districts are following suit by adopting tougher nutrition guidelines.

It's time for us to help children develop healthy eating habits at an early age. To encourage a lifetime of good habits, children need to learn the importance of healthy eating along with regular physical activity on a daily basis. Parents are right to closely monitor their children's well-being at home, but the next best place to reinforce these positive habits is at school.

So why is Florida orange juice a perfect match for school nutrition?

One word. Breakfast.

Breakfast = School Success

We've all had someone tell us "Eat your breakfast. It's the most important meal of the day!"

But why are they always saying that?

Studies report that breakfast may not only improve school performance and nutrient intakes, but breakfast eaters may also have healthier body weights.¹ In fact, with a school breakfast program, students' math and reading scores improved, they were less likely to miss class or be tardy, discipline problems decreased and visits to the school nurse also declined. ^{2, 3, 4,}

With breakfast contributing less than 20% of daily calories,^5,6 Florida orange juice is the ideal complement by providing several key vitamins and minerals, such as

vitamin C, folate and potassium, that may otherwise be missed during the day.

Opportunities to Grow

Solutions to overcome nutrition guideline barriers in schools are not universal. Many schools offer a combination of breakfast options such as:

• Breakfast in the classroom
• Non-traditional breakfast times (second chance breakfast)
• Breakfast kiosks
• Grab-and-go breakfast
• Breakfast on the bus

School nutrition is vital to the future of our children's well-being and the FDOC wants to be an integral part in its success. To positively impact school nutrition, contact us for a wealth of information and ideas.

1.       American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine. 2009; 3:86-103.

2.       Walstron and Begalle. Top Clin Nutr, 1999.

3.       Murphy et al. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 1998.

4.       Meyers et al. Am J Diseases Children. 1989.

5.       NHANES 1999-2002.

6.       BIHN Dietary Intake Study, 2004-05.