Revolution Foods Emphasizes the Value of Accessible, Healthy School Meals as SNAP Debate Continues

BOSTON, Nov. 14, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- The proposed federal rule limiting the number of people to receive federal food stamps under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) has the potential of preventing nearly one million low-income students from receiving automatic access to free school lunches. As such, Revolution Foods, leading provider of kid-inspired, chef-crafted meals serving 2,500 schools and community sites throughout New England, including Greater Boston, as well as key cities nationwide, is asserting the need to make nutritious, affordable meals accessible to at-risk communities. Committed to transforming citywide wellness, the company is reminding policy makers, and local community members, to recognize the harmful impact of these changes and instead focus on improving the health and welfare of our country's most at-risk students. 

"We believe no child should go hungry and that every student deserves access to delicious meals made with quality ingredients," comments Kristin Groos Richmond, founder and CEO of Revolution Foods. "We know proper nutrition and healthy food are absolutely essential to driving positive academic outcomes, so we urge policy makers to avoid compromising food access for millions of families in need and potentially inhibiting the ability for our youth to achieve their true potential in and out of school."

A recent impact report released by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation shows a strong correlation between nutrition and academic performance. When compared to students in similar schools that were not served its foods, the research found schools that serve Revolution Foods meals saw an improvement of 13.1% in English Language Arts (ELA) test results. A similar paper published by UC Berkeley finds students at schools that contract with a healthier school-lunch vendor perform better on tests. In this study, Revolution Foods was ranked the #1 healthiest provider of nutritious meals. Revolution Foods meals exceed both federal and district nutrition guidelines so that they are federally reimbursable and drive improved health outcomes in students.

Access to healthy food is an ongoing challenge for millions of Americans as many families rely on SNAP and the National School Lunch Program to nourish their children. While many administrators recognize the importance of good nutrition in schools, nutrition standards vary from school to school and from state to state. By collaborating with each institution to create unique meal programs that cater to the needs of its students, Revolution Foods aims not only to improve overall student meal satisfaction but also drive increased student participation in its breakfast, lunch and supper meal programs throughout all the communities it serves in New England and beyond. The company actively seeks constant improvements to ensure every meal served is highly nutritious and tasty—and ultimately satisfies local students, administrators and parents.

Recent developments in New England include:

• Launched new platforms to support school partner needs, including the introduction of a family style meal platform, which provides students a familiar, homestyle experience, as well as breakfast-after-the-bell kiosks, to increase engagement and participation
• Introduced new kid-inspired, chef-crafted menu items, including Chicken & Waffles and Cheesy Chicken & Salsa Nacho Dip with Scoops as well as new fresh produce, such as jicama sticks and figs, to drive excitement at the lunch line
• Conducted thousands of student surveys to gauge satisfaction levels with their meals
• Implemented new packaging that allows students to easily see the delicious offerings to drive appetite appeal
• Launched a thematic cycle menu based on student survey results which features Latin Tuesday, Pizza Wednesday, Try it Thursday and Fun Friday

Moreover, Revolution Foods continues to implement its supper program across its partner networks, currently serving over 10 million supper meals per year nationwide. This year, the company began serving Boston Public Schools (BPS) supper meals in September—today, the company serves 4,500 supper meals daily across 100 BPS locations. Further, to increase local purchasing and procurement, Revolution Foods will celebrate Local Food Day with BPS with exclusive menu items including local cheese quesadilla, tomato and corn salsa, and apples for students to enjoy. "Our menu is looked at through both students' and chefs' lens to ensure taste and flavor are at the forefront of any meal we create. We believe that everyone deserves access to healthy food, and we are committed to working with our partners to deliver great-tasting meals at an affordable price," explains Cliff Lyles, executive chef and VP of culinary excellence at Revolution Foods.

Revolution Foods has served the New England region since 2015. Additionally, the company serves early childhood education centers, districts, charter schools, and community and afterschool youth programs in over 400 cities and towns across fifteen states throughout the U.S, including San Francisco, Los Angeles, Denver, Dallas, New Orleans, Philadelphia, New York City and Washington, D.C., among others. For more information on Revolution Foods visit revolutionfoods.com.

About Revolution Foods
Founded in 2006 by two businesswomen and moms on a mission to build lifelong healthy eaters, Revolution Foods set out to solve the problem of limited access to healthy meals for every child in America. The company's innovative approach began with serving freshly prepared, healthy meals to students in schools nationwide, and the company has now designed, produced and delivered over 360 million kid-inspired, chef-crafted meals to sites across 15 states, including childhood education centers, districts, charter schools, and community and afterschool youth programs. Revolution Foods' experience shows—and studies support—that nutritious foods drive improved health and academic outcomes. A recent impact assessment conducted by KKS Advisors on behalf of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation found schools that serve Revolution Foods saw an improvement of 13.1% in English Language Arts (ELA) test results. Together with best-in-class community partners such as FoodCorps, Stephen and Ayesha Curry's Eat. Learn. Play. Foundation and Wellness in the Schools (WITS), Revolution Foods equips parents, teachers and students with valuable tools and resources to continue positive nutrition education beyond the lunch line. Revolution Foods is a certified B Corporation, awarded as one of B Corps' 2019 Best for the World honorees, that aims to drive systems change, from policy and food systems evolution to driving positive student academic and health outcomes to build a brighter future for our nation's youth and families.  

SOURCE Revolution Foods

Related Links

https://www.revolutionfoods.com