By Nina Elder
What’s Happening
• Nearly 64 percent of schools now offer vegetarian lunch options, according to a report by the School Nutrition Organization.
• When the group started tracking these statistics back in 2003, the percentage of pro-veggie schools hovered around 22 percent.
• As these numbers have grown, so has the quality of vegetarian cafeteria fare. Instead of plates of steamed veggies, students can now choose from dishes like pasta with lentil sauce, chef’s salad with yogurt and sunflower seeds, and veggie pizza with whole grain crust.
• The report also found that nearly 21 percent of schools provide vegan options to students.
What This Means to Business
• With the uptick in childhood obesity and a new crop of very proactive parents, school lunch has become a cause that’s near and dear to many consumers. Today’s parents insist on local, sustainable, and healthful options for their growing kiddos.
• Parents feed their children healthful meals at home—and they want to be sure their good work won’t be undone when their little ones hit the cafeteria.
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