Long Meadow Elementary School first-grader Angela Knowles carries her lunch tray to the table. Cafeteria workers encourage all students who buy lunch to include vegetables and fresh fruit.

MIDDLEBURY-SOUTHBURY - Gone are the greasy fries and fried dough from the Middlebury and Southbury schools' lunch rooms.

This year, Region 15 school cafeteria workers are now serving healthier meals to the students and staff at the district's seven schools.

The lunch menu selections were updated this year in order to become compliant with the Connecticut Healthy Nutrition Standards for Food and to encourage children to make more healthful food choices.

"We have eliminated all fried food," said Food Services Director Peter Brooks. "The French fries and chicken patties, for example, are all oven baked.

"Overall, the children have accepted the changes well and the parents seem pleased that we are eliminating or reducing our foods' fats and sugars."

In 2004, Congress passed legislation requiring all school districts that have a federally-funded school meals program to implement wellness policies that address nutrition and physical activity.

Established in 2005, the Region 15 Wellness Committee is comprised of parents, students and school administrators, as well as representatives of the district's food services and health education departments.

The Region 15 Wellness Committee meets to create the district's nutrition and physical activity policy components, and to address methods for promoting physical education, informed food choices and healthy lifestyles.

"We're working with the Wellness Committee to create and post nutritional charts at all of the schools to help the students make informed choices," said Mr. Brooks.

"These charts will note each food item's calorie count, and the number of fat, carbohydrate and protein grams."

The cafeterias are serving high fiber pasta, 100 percent juice, water, baked potato chips and Boar's Head low-fat deli meats, amongst other choices.

The menu changes were also a response to a food service survey to parents. Last year, parents were asked their opinion about the food choices

at the cafeterias and the costs associated with healthier foods.

Overwhelmingly, parents responded that they would pay more per meal if the menu items were of a higher quality with less sugars and fats.

"More often than at other meals, children get to decide what they would like to eat for lunch," said Mr. Brooks. "We believe that by offering healthier menu choices, we're helping children stay fit and strong so they can do well in school."

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Food Services Director Peter Brooks shows off the nutritional posters which

are being hung at the schools to help students make informed menu choices.

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