Wichita, Kan. (Vocus) May 28, 2009
When given the opportunity, kids can demonstrate their ability to literally “make” their own healthy choices. Students and classrooms in schools in New York, Ohio and two in Missouri won the seventh annual Healthy Kids Challenge Stirring Up Health™ national recipe contest for middle school students.
Healthy Kids Challenge (HKC) is a national non-profit led by registered dietitians to educate kids and adults using simple, fun solutions for healthy lifestyles. As the national health care debate heats up, prevention education has been suggested to be an important part of the equation according to the health care industry.
Students from Patricia Skjodlahl’s family and consumer science class in Deer Park New York were one of the contest winners. Ms. Skjodlahl stated that programs applying real-world opportunities for students are invaluable.
“I’m thrilled that our students applied what we learn in the classroom about healthy eating,” said Skjodlahl. “I feel like I’m making a difference by educating students to make healthy and wise food choices that will impact their overall health in the future,” she said.
Middle school students across the country were invited to create healthy recipes and write essays that identified personal goals for better health. The winning students and schools were awarded a “Chef for a Day”, a school visit by a culinary arts chef from Johnson and Wales University. Classes enjoyed assisting in preparing the winning recipes and learning lessons about food skills for a healthy lifestyle. JWU is a world-class university where students have an opportunity to pursue a career education in business, hospitality, culinary arts, or technology. JWU maintains campuses in Providence, R.I., North Miami, Fla., Denver, Colo. and Charlotte, N.C. (www.jwu.edu).
The Stirring Up Health™ recipe contest required the kids to use two ingredients, tortillas and cheese, to create their culinary masterpieces. Teachers were provided activities to assist their students in building advocacy for healthy eating and an active lifestyle. Sponsored by Cabot Creamery, Mission Foods and Johnson & Wales University, the annual contest is organized by Healthy Kids Challenge.
“Throughout the school year, we tested and changed recipes to make them healthier,” said Karen Werner, a food and consumer sciences teacher at Danby Rush Tower Middle School in Festus, Mo., one of the winning schools in the Healthy Kids Challenge Stirring Up Health™ contest. “It was all quite a learning experience.”
“Mission Foods aims to increase awareness about the importance of physical activity and nutrition,” said Senior Marketing Director of Mission Foods, Tom Gray. “Through this contest, Mission can support its objective of helping students make a healthy difference in their lives.”
Sara Wing, Dietitian and Health Programs Manager for Cabot Creamery said, “We love that Healthy Kids Challenge promotes healthy eating by encouraging students to create healthy recipes and practice cooking skills. These are skills that will last students a lifetime.”
Healthy Kids Challenge Director, Vickie James, points out that, “Classroom and family entries we received from all over the country demonstrate how it is possible to motivate kids to make healthy choices – matching our motto of ‘Eat, Move, Enjoy Healthy Balance.’”
Healthy Kids Challenge was founded in 1998 to raise awareness and encourage healthy changes in eating and physical activity habits for youth and their families. The HKC focus for assistance is on positive self-esteem and healthy choices, rather than weight. HKC offers simple solutions for schools, communities, and industry to incorporate healthy eating and physical activity into daily life anywhere kids and families live, learn, work, and play. To learn more about Healthy Kids Challenge and view the winning recipes, visit www.healthykidschallenge.com.
About Mission Foods
Mission Foods, headquartered in Irving (Dallas area), Texas and Gruma S.A.B. de C.V., a Mexican corporation, was founded in 1949, and is one of the largest tortilla manufacturers in the United States. Gruma S.A. de C.V. is the parent company of Mission Foods (Gruma Corporation) and is a leading Mexican producer of corn masa flour and tortilla products. It has operations in Mexico, the United States, Central and South America, Europe and Asia. Mission has been a valuable partner for moms, creating simple yet healthy recipe ideas using tortillas. For more information and recipe ideas, visit Mission Foods’ at www.missionmenus.com.
About Cabot Creamery
Since its beginning in 1919, Cabot Creamery Cooperative has been dedicated to family and promoting community involvement. In fact, today 1400 farm families of Agri-Mark, the Northeast’s premier dairy cooperative, own Cabot, which is best known as makers of “The World’s Best Cheddar.” For additional information on Cabot Creamery, their education programs, recipes and more, visit www.cabotcheese.coop
Contact:
Healthy Kids Challenge
2 West Road 210
Dighton, KS 67839
Vickie L. James, HKC Director
888-259-6287 or 620-397-3901
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