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Dear Parents:

The student nutrition division welcomes you back to a new school year. As your school district’s food service provider, our primary goal is promoting your students’ overall well-being and growth with nutritious menus; innovative, student-inspired dining environments; and wellness education programs that support their achievement! The following is a summary of our nutrition and wellness programs that have been created for the new school year, specifically for your students, as part of our overall “Sharpened Focus on the Health and Wellness of your Children.” Have a great school year!

The student nutrition division is committed to improving the health and academic potential of your students and children.

Our Healthy for Life Program

• Provides a wide variety of menu offerings of safe, wholesome, nutritious foods
• Teaches students to make healthy meal and lifestyle choices
• Creates appealing and healthy eating environments
• Builds healthy resources for your school, district and community
• Works together with you to find new ways to make your children Healthy For Life

Our Menu Philosophy

Aramark is committed to providing safe, nutritious food, prepared fresh daily. We align with prominent global food companies to buy the highest quality products available. Our menus are created from an extensive database of age-segmented recipes, developed by our Culinary Team (of dietitians, chefs, and purchasing specialists) and manufacturer partners. We collaborate with parents to accommodate the dietary requirements of students with special needs. For your students, we offer a variety of meal choices with one goal in mind: To provide outstanding service and high quality “kid-friendly” meals that meet or exceed the latest federal and state requirements. To reach this goal, we:

• Work directly with food companies to set new industry standards for healthier foods, by requiring all key products meet our criteria to reduce or eliminate fats, salt and sugars, and to add whole grains.
• Incorporate wholesome, natural ingredients, and source foods rich in fiber and essential vitamins and minerals, like whole grain breads, pastas and cereals; fresh fruits and vegetables (local when available); low fat or non-fat milk; other reduced fat dairy options; and lean, low fat chicken, beef, and fish.
• Source high quality, safe foods with no added trans fats; hormone- and antibiotic-free dairy products; poultry raised without hormones and with only humane use of antibiotics.
• Use minimally-processed foods, and foods without artificial ingredients and high fructose corn syrup, wherever possible.

The products and cooking methods we use conserve food quality and nutrients, while limiting the addition of fats and eliminating frying. So although you may see popular items like pizza and chicken nuggets on your menus, you can rest assured that your child’s meal selections are lower in fat and salt and contain healthy whole grains.

Our Wellness Commitments

1. Serve nutritious menus that exceed current USDA requirements and meet individual State requirements for all students.
2. Promote participation in National School Breakfast Program in a variety of settings including in the cafeteria and classroom.
3. Offer healthy, nutrient-dense snacks and healthy meal options for after school programs and special events.
4. Encourage healthy lifestyles by linking nutrition messaging with the foods we serve.
5. Employ proven techniques to encourage students to try new, healthy foods.
6. Buy locally, partner with organizations to procure sustainable foods, and support school gardens to help schools become more “environmentally friendly.”
7. Provide quality service to our students and our customers with an engaged, committed staff.
8. Train and encourage staff to be good stewards of water and energy in schools; support composting, recycling, and green cleaning for healthy school environments, where possible.
9. Advance employee knowledge and sensitivity to health and wellness education through training and communication resources.
10. Engage in legislative advocacy on behalf of our nation’s students.

Elementary & Secondary Programs

Dining Environments - Dynamic, age-segmented dining environments promote healthy meal selection, excite students, and increase student meal participation.

Special Event Promotions - In addition to wellness menu specials, we also have special event and holiday promotions customized for each school. These celebrate holidays like Thanksgiving; national events like National Nutrition Month and Earth Day; and school-specific events, such as homecoming or the Spring dances.

MONTHLY SPECIAL EVENT FEATURES

• September: National Cheese Pizza Day, Grandparent's Day, National Cheeseburger Day, Ace's Birthday Bash, National Pancake Day
• October: National Taco Day, National Pasta Day, National School Lunch Week, National Potato Day, Halloween
• November: Cookie Monster's Birthday, National Sandwich Day, National Nacho Day, Thanksgiving, National French Toast Day
• December: Winter Holiday, Grinch Day, National Cookie Day, National Bagel Day
• January: National Spaghetti Day, National Popcorn Day, National Peanut Butter Day, National Blueberry Pancake Day
• February: Super Bowl, National Tater Tot Day, National Pizza Day, Valentine's, National Muffin Day, National Chili Day, National Strawberry Day    
• March: National School Breakfast Week, Dr. Seuss' Birthday, National Cereal Day, National Meatball Day, First Day of Spring, Crunchy Taco, International Waffle Day, Baseball Opening Day, National Hot Chicken Day
• April: International Carrot Day, National Grilled Cheese Day, Earth Day, National Picnic Day, National Pretzel Day
• May: Meatless Monday, Breakfast for Lunch, Donuts, Smoothies, BBQ Bash, Nuggets, Mac & Cheese, Take a Taste

LTO MENU

The LTO program features monthly menu specials, developed by our chefs and nutritionists, that generate excitement by introducing new recipes or putting new twists on popular favorites. Designed for elementary, middle, and high school students, LTO combats menu fatigue and reinforces the connection between healthy, flavorful meals and performance at school.

NUTRITION EDUCATION

Our nutrition education programs encourage students’ development of healthy lifestyle habits and communicate the basics of good nutrition. ACE Nutrition Mascot Program Throughout the school year, our elementary school mascot, ACE and his friends, share the Stay Healthy® wellness message through a monthly program. Students learn the importance of healthy eating, regular exercise and getting plenty of sleep. Please visit acefanclub.com to learn more. This year's theme is Global Adventure Ace! Each month, Ace and his elementary friends will provide students with exciting educational information about fruits and vegetables while circling the globe. This program will also encourage healthy eating and an active lifestyle.

EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES FOR STUDENTS

• Monthly Wellness Poster Series Eye-catching, age-relevant posters, highlighting a Wellness Lesson of the Month, for use in the cafeteria or classroom setting
• Healthy Bites: A program that provides students with the opportunity to sample nutritious foods that align with key wellness topics

FOCUS ON BREAKFAST

Numerous studies have shown that breakfast improves attendance, behavior, and performance in school. Developing the breakfast habit at an early age also helps students maintain a healthy lifestyle. A well-balanced breakfast provides the fuel their bodies demand to stay energized and alert throughout the day, while eliminating the desire to overindulge between meals.

The school breakfast program provides students with an opportunity to jump start their days with a healthy and nutritious meal. 

The program includes a wide variety of great tasting morning favorites that are nutritious, delicious and portable such as:

• Fresh whole fruits
• Whole grain cereals
• Yogurt and smoothie beverages
• 100 percent juices
• Packaged, healthy breakfast favorites
• Breakfast in the café
• On-the-go breakfast convenience carts

ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY

We’re a global company that touches millions of people’s lives every day. Our size and reach gives us the opportunity to minimize environmental impacts in hundreds of locations in our operations and in our communities.  Green Thread, our environmental sustainability commitment, symbolizes our approach to weave environmental sustainability into everything we do. We make progress every day on our commitment to source responsibly, minimize waste, operate efficiently, and optimize transportation and fleet. We constantly seek to improve our own practices, and we offer our expertise to find practical solutions for thousands of clients worldwide. And, we don’t stop there. We measure the impact of our work and hold ourselves accountable to always do better.

• Responsible Sourcing
• Waste Minimization
• Efficient Operations
• Fleet Management
• Specific to K-12, we engage in Farm to School programs by working with suppliers to identify local produce, support farmers, and promote nutrition. We also partner FarmLogix, a company that uses an online platform to connect local farmers to schools
• Recognized by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) as a Food Loss and Waste 2030 Champion for our commitment to reduce food loss and waste in operations by 50% by 2030

© 2019 Aramark Student Nutrition. All Rights