Lights, Camera, Lunch: New Documentary Lunch Line, Presented by Applegate Farms, Shows Kids Setting the Table for Change

DETROIT, May 18 /PRNewswire/ -- Every day, millions of school children across the United States grab a lunch tray and get in line.  Few, if any, know the history behind the line or that they have the power to change what gets placed on the tray.  The new documentary, Lunch Line, which is presented by Applegate Farms and premieres tonight at the national Farm to Cafeteria Conference, hopes to empower Americans to be part of solutions that can help build a better lunch for future students.

"Lunch Line reveals the National School Lunch Program's surprising history and the unexpected ways it has grown and changed over the years to feed more than 31 million children every day," said Michael Graziano, who co-directed the film with Ernie Park, his partner at Uji Films.  "The film pulls back the curtain to reveal, through school lunch, how large-scale social change can work," said Park.

Lunch Line follows the personal story of six high school students from Chicago who enter a cooking contest to create a healthier school lunch and end up serving their winning meal to congressional leaders and touring the White House with executive mansion chefs.  The tale of the students from Tilden Career Community Academy High School is interspersed with archival footage and interviews with current leaders from both ends of the lunch line, including government officials, school foodservice experts and activists.

The Tilden students were challenged to create a meal that exceeds United States Department of Agriculture standards and use only $1 per meal for ingredients – the average amount spent on food per child for the National School Lunch Program, according to Rochelle Davis, executive director of the Healthy Schools Campaign, the non-profit organization that holds the "Cooking Up Change" contest that the Tilden students won.  "These students were faced with the challenges faced by foodservice directors across the country," said Davis.  "Yet, they also seized the opportunity to learn about school food systems and the need for change."

"The story of the Tilden kids is what hooked me, and I hope they will inspire other young people to be active in their school community," said Stephen McDonnell, founder and CEO of Applegate Farms, the company presenting the film.  "By participating in the process and speaking up about the need to improve funding for the National School Lunch Program, the Tilden kids showed how we all can get involved to make real and lasting change."

Inspired by Lunch Line and the Chicago students, Applegate Farms, a leading provider of natural and organic meats and cheeses, created a resource, www.eattoanewbeat.com.  The website uses art, music and dance to empower kids to eat better, learn about real food and understand how they can create change in their own "lunch lines" at school.

The filmmakers and McDonnell agree that Lunch Line's debut at the Farm to Cafeteria Conference is very timely given the dialogue about child nutrition.

"Childhood obesity rates continue to rise but we believe obesity is a symptom of a much larger problem," said McDonnell.  "People need help understanding where their food comes from, how it's made, and how their choices affect their health. If we can help young kids understand how food affects their lives from the farm to their bodies, it's more likely that they'll enjoy healthier and more active lifestyles into adulthood."

For more information about Lunch Line, visit www.applegatefarms.com.

About Uji Films

Ernie Park and Michael Graziano formed Uji Films in 2007.  Their films have aired nationally and internationally in more than 100 countries, are distributed in the educational market and have screened at a variety of well-known festivals.  In addition to making films, Park and Graziano also have taught and written on film and media.  Both Park and Graziano have achieved doctoral candidacy in Film and Media Studies – Graziano at Northwestern University and Park at New York University.

About the Healthy Schools Campaign (HSC)

The Healthy Schools Campaign, an independent not-for-profit organization, is a leading authority on healthy school environments and a voice for people who care about our environment, our children, and education. HSC advocates for policies and practices that allow all students, teachers and staff to learn and work in a healthy school environment.

About the Farm to School Network and the Farm to Cafeteria Conference

The National Farm to School Network is a collaborative project of the Center for Food & Justice, a division of the Urban & Environmental Food Policy Institute at Occidental College and the Community Food Security Coalition.  Farm to School brings healthy food from local farms to school children nationwide.  The program teaches students about the path from farm to fork, and instills healthy eating habits that can last a lifetime.  At the same time, use of local produce in school meals and educational activities provides a new direct market for farmers in the area and mitigates environmental impacts of transporting food long distances.

About Applegate Farms

For more than 20 years, Applegate Farms has been producing high-quality natural and organic hot dogs, bacon and deli meats.  Natural can mean many things, but when consumers see the word "natural" on the Applegate Farms label, they are guaranteed that the meat inside is:

• Free of antibiotics or hormones
• From animals fed a vegetarian or 100% grass diet and treated with humane animal standards
• Free of chemical nitrites, nitrates or phosphates
• Free of artificial ingredients or preservatives

For more information about Applegate Farms and its products, visit www.applegatefarms.com.

SOURCE Applegate Farms