Sodexo's 'All Local Day' Promotes Locally-Sourced Menu Options for New England Schools

GAITHERSBURG, Md., Sept. 16 /PRNewswire/ -- Today students in 16 New England public school districts will help their communities as they help themselves to lunch during Sodexo's All Local Day, an event featuring menu choices sourced from local suppliers.

The day, which is part of Sodexo's commitment to the overall well-being of the students it serves, offers a great opportunity for more than 74,000 students throughout the region and their parents to learn more about the wide range of food available in New England and the social, economic, and environmental benefits of seasonal and locally grown products.

Local suppliers have enthusiastically embraced the initiative. Growers at Pezza Farm in Johnston, R.I., for example, planted and harvested 600 lbs of lettuce specifically for this occasion.

"It's relatively easy for students and parents to understand the argument for fresher, healthier foods that are grown locally," said Cathy Rocco, district manager for Sodexo. "Initiatives like Sodexo's All Local Day take that a step further and help to demonstrate how local food cannot only sustain personal health, but the businesses, families, and the communities where they live and work as well."

In Massachusetts, Sodexo's menu for the day features includes locally-made Kayem hot dogs, local tortellini with marinara sauce, deli sandwiches with locally-baked pita pockets and chicken cranberry apple salad with cranberry vinaigrette dressing from Cain's Foods.

In Rhode Island, Sodexo is featuring menu items like Catanzaro's Italian pasta sauce, vegetarian chili made with local peppers and tomatoes, egg salad sandwich made from local eggs on locally-baked bread, a saute of farm-fresh zucchini, while Vermont menus will feature locally-raised chicken with homemade maple barbeque sauce, roasted local root vegetable medley, Vermont-fresh Pasta with homemade vegetable marinara sauce and Hood cottage cheese and milk.

The following school districts in New England are participating in All Local Day:

• Fitchburg Public Schools (Massachusetts)
• Cranston Public Schools (Rhode Island)
• Cumberland Public Schools (Rhode Island)
• Exeter-West Greenwich Regional School District (Rhode Island)
• Foster (Rhode Island)
• Glocester (Rhode Island)
• Foster-Glocester Regional Schools (Rhode Island)
• Jamestown School Department (Rhode Island)
• Newport Public Schools (Rhode Island)
• Pawtucket School Department (Rhode Island)
• Providence Public School District (Rhode Island)
• Warwick Public Schools (Rhode Island)
• West Warwick School District (Rhode Island)
• Woonsocket Public Schools (Rhode Island)
• North Country Supervisory Union (Vermont)
• Rutland City Public Schools (Vermont)

All Local Day represents just one of the ways in which Sodexo works to meet the strategic needs of its clients in the communities where it operates. The all-local event demonstrates Sodexo's commitment to sustainability and its corporate responsibility as outlined in its Better Tomorrow Plan.

Sodexo is committed to take measurable sustainable actions that ensure a brighter future in the areas of health and wellness, environmental stewardship and community development. Sodexo School Services focuses on nutrition, achievement, environment, community and activity to promote student well-being.

For more information about Sodexo and its commitment to locally-sourced, sustainable food visit www.sodexoUSA.com and click the link for Corporate Citizenship.

About Sodexo

Sodexo in North America

Sodexo, Inc. (www.sodexoUSA.com), leading Quality of Daily Life Solutions company in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico, delivers On Site Service Solutions in Corporate, Education, Health Care, Government, and Remote Site segments, as well as Motivation Solutions such as Esteem Pass. Sodexo, Inc., headquartered in Gaithersburg, Md., funds all administrative costs for the Sodexo Foundation (www.SodexoFoundation.org), an independent charitable organization that, since its founding in 1999, has made more than $13 million in grants to fight hunger in America. Visit the corporate blog at www.sodexoUSA.com/blog.

Sodexo, world leader in Quality of Daily Life Solutions

Quality of Life plays an important role in the progress of individuals and the performance of organizations.  Based on this conviction, Sodexo is the strategic partner for companies and institutions that place a premium on performance and well-being, as it has since Pierre Bellon founded the company in 1966. Sharing the same passion for service, Sodexo's 380,000 employees, in 80 countries design, manage and deliver an unrivaled range of On-site Service Solutions and Motivation Solutions. Sodexo has created a new form of service business that contributes to the economic, social and environmental development of the communities, regions and countries in which it operates and to the fulfillment of its employees.

Key Figures (as of August 31, 2009)

SOURCE Sodexo