First Lady Michelle Obama to Unveil New Initiative to Bring Up to 5,000 Salad Bars in US Schools

First Lady Michelle Obama to unveil new initiative as part of "Let's Move" campaign that could bring up to 5,000 salad bars in U.S. schools.

I applaud First Lady Michelle Obama for recognizing we have an epidemic in this country where weight is concerned, particularly obesity among school aged children. But I have one problem with this initiative. She is expected to announce a new initiative that is expected to place up to 5,000 salad bars in public schools nationwide. Herein lies the problem I have: how will food safety be ensured? Yeah, I can see a sick kid sneezing all over the food at the salad bar. That's okay. I'll take a pass on this one where my kids are concerned. Still, one has to wonder how local health inspectors deal with these salad bars, in as far as the new nutrition-tracking rules are concerned.

Officials in the White House, led by chef Sam Kass, and at the U.S. Centers for Disease and Prevention, have been working to build a coalition representing the produce industry and Ann Cooper, director of nutrition services in Boulder, Colo. schools, who recently teamed with Whole Foods to raise $1.4 million from customers to establish a grant program that would place salad bars in qualifying schools.

Under the initiative expected to be announced on Monday in Florida, where First Lady Michelle Obama has taken her "Let's Move" campaign to fight childhood obesity, Cooper would manage applications for salad bars from the schools along with distribution of funds to purchase necessary equipment.

Cooper named three school districts she knows of -- Philadelphia, Austin, Tex., and Montgomery County, Md., -- that have already indicated they will not support salad bars. Concerns have been raised that elementary school children in particular might be prone to spread disease at salad bars because they are too short for the standard "sneeze guard" installed on most salad bars, or because they might use their hands instead of the serving utensils provided. Source: Grist

There are more problems with this initiative. How will they deal with portion-control? Will there be a cafeteria employee charged with standing by the salad bar? I shudder to think that this will be another bill for taxpayers like me to foot. Why not start with educating parents on healthy food choices? The reality is that nothing is ever done according to the book when the government gets involved.