Child Nutrition Subcommittee
The Child Nutrition Subcommittee’s goal is to influence policies and programs that increase access to, and quality of, fresh, healthy, local food for all youth across Allegheny County and in the larger Southwest PA region.
GROUP FOCUS:
Inequitable access to nutritious, affordable food among school districts and within school districts;
Improved access to nutritious, affordable food as a means of addressing chronic disease and diet-related health issues in schools, or at youth-focused events and programs;
Local, state or federal regulations that hinder or disincentive consumption of nutritious food throughout youth-focused places and programs;
Logistical obstacles to institutional purchasing of nutritious, local food for schools;
Farm to School; promoting local food in school cafeterias, hands-on learning opportunities for students, and educating students on agriculture, food, and health.
Active members include Allegheny County Health Department, Grow Pittsburgh, Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank, United Way of Southwest PA, Adagio Health PowerUp!, UPMC Children’s Hospital, Allies for Children, Common Threads, and others
Contact Information: Sarah Buranskas
Current Projects:
Farm to School - As a direct result of the Pittsburgh School Food Environment report, written by the Harvard Food Law and Policy Clinic with guidance from the FHE, the working group applied for a USDA Farm to School grant. The grant was awarded to Grow Pittsburgh, the PFPC and Pittsburgh Public Schools to increase awareness of the PPS Harvest of the Month program, which features one vegetable each month of the school year. Additionally the work on the grant will include research on freezing and co-packing in Southwestern Pennsylvania, expansion of Grow Pittsburgh school gardens, and a framework for future Farm to School programming and implementation for Pittsburgh Public Schools. Critical partners in the grant-writing and implementation process include Just Harvest, Grow Pittsburgh, and Pittsburgh Public Schools. Check out more info on Grow Pittsburgh’s site!
Good Food Purchasing Policy - Subcommittee members are currently learning about the value categories outlined for school food purchasing and discussing routes for advocacy on this topic. The GFPP coalition will
Imagine PPS - In close collaboration with staff at Pittsburgh Public Schools, Subcommittee members are participating in a 6-month planning process to determine recommendations for increasing ‘Homemade Healthy Meals’ in PPS cafeterias.
PA Farm to School Stat ewide Network- Staff from the PFPC participates in the statewide Farm to School Network, led by The Food Trust in Philadelphia. This statewide body discusses and works towards best practices and policy changes across the Commonwealth. Sign up for the PA Farm to School Network newsletter, The Monthly Harvest for more info!
Past Projects:
Pittsburgh School Food Environment - In partnership with the Harvard Food Law & Policy Clinic, the working group created a report that assessed the school food environment at Pittsburgh Public Schools (PPS). Additional documents highlighted key successes at PPS, and recommended actions for improvement.
Advocacy for Child Nutrition Programs - In response to a proposed rule change by the United States Department of Agriculture that would alter requirements for Child Nutrition Programs, introduced via the 2010 Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act, the working group created this document as an official comment submission.
Regional School Food Summit: Subcommittee members collaborated with state and national partners to bring expertise and learning opportunities to school district personnel, growers, and educators in the SWPA region. The summit took place at Chatham University’s Eden Hall Campus, and saw over 100 attendees.
Summer meals/school breakfast - More info to come!