K-12 Schools

The Marketing Game: "Selling" kids on eating healthy

As everyone who has ever fed a child knows well, just because it's good for them doesn't mean they'll eat it. So how do you get a kid to eat healthful food? Especially at school?

Two words -- Menu and Marketing.

The answer, you'll be glad to hear, is NOT to turn your cafeteria into a non-fat, vegetarian eatery. Small changes make a big difference. Start by replacing bottled juices, which can be high in processed sugars and low in actual juice and nutrient content, with fresh whole fruits and freshly squeezed juices. Since variety is one of the best ways to keep kids interested in school menus, each week feature a new recipe of lemonade or orange juice drink. The Sunkist web page offers a variety of fun citrus drink recipes. Check them out and discover that the more playful you become with your menu drink ideas, the more likely you will win with students. Just one Sunkist orange holds all the Vitamin C a child needs each day and a medium-sized lemon has more than one-third of the daily requirement. Think about citrus as a garnish too, since even a few citrus slices pack a nutritional wallop.

Other tips and tricks:

Soups are a great way to "sneak" fresh vegetables into your meal selections.

Another good nutritional Trojan horse is ethnic fare: Burritos and other food wraps can blend the flavor of a cheese, chicken or beef filling with diced and cubed broccoli, carrots and cauliflower. In addition, the taste of citrus in any recipe gives the entrée a refreshing and flavorful taste, masking some of the other healthy ingredients that students might not favor. So think about ways to incorporate citrus into dishes. Asian stir fry allows the sweet flavor of citrus to work magic with vegetables and healthy soy. Marinades that incorporate citrus make seafood dishes come alive for students. For stir fry and marinade ideas, the Sunkist web page is a great resource.

But menu is only one part of a two-pronged approach to running a successful school-based operation. You also need a marketing plan. The reality is that while you may be offering the nutritionally superior, higher quality menu selections, you're competing against fast food restaurants and their massive marketing machines.

You haven't got their budget, but you do have better access to the kids. In one South Florida school, the foodservice manager took advantage of that access by sponsoring a variety of food education events. Her veggie-tasting party featuring raw veggie strips and dips was a kid-pleaser. First graders loved learning their alphabet from A is for Apple through O is for oranges clear to Z is for (you guessed it) zucchini.

1. Get your staff involved. Employee interest and enthusiasm is crucial.
2. Consider how food looks as well as how it tastes.
3. Be customer-oriented. Greet students with a smile. Learn students' names. And wear nametags so students can greet you by name too.
4. Target your customers. Find out what students like and dislike, and what gets their attention. Your competition certainly does! For starters, you might set up a student advisory group.
5. Be creative. Your menus are a direct line of communication with parents as well as students. Cultivate the natural link between the classroom and lunchroom through activities such as nutrition quizzes and games on the back of menus. Brighten up the cafeteria and make it more fun.
6. Finally, as a manager, ask yourself questions from the students' perspective to see if your operation meets their needs.

• Are you doing a good job displaying food?
• What is the first thing a student sees in the serving area?
• How does the food look from the customer's point of view?
• Do garnishes complement the flavor, color, and texture of the foods?
• Does the serving staff place the food on the plate so it will look attractive?
• Are serving sizes correct?
• Are pre-portioned food items served in appropriate quantities for the age groups being served?

The devil, they say, is in the details. If you assess your foodservice operation through the eyes of your students, you're on your way to formulating an effective marketing approach.