HRM Parent Blog

Watching a recent episode of Jamie’s Oliver’s Food Revolution got me thinking:  How many of our HRM kids know where their food comes from?  In our modern-day, convenience-based commercialized food world, how many kids know the difference between a whole and processed food or between organic and conventionally farmed produce? How many have visited a working farm, or grown food from seed?  How many know how to read a basic food label, or understand what is added to our food to make it last so long and look so good on the grocery store shelves?

For those of you not familiar with Jamie Oliver’s show, he is trying to improve the foods served to American children in school cafeterias.  Interestingly, it doesn’t take much for him to get the kids on board with healthier eating.  The resistance usually comes from the schools or school boards, who are used to doing things one way and are often locked into supply contracts with a less than healthy bulk food supplier.

In the episode I just watched, Jamie was surprised at how little the high-schoolers he was working with knew about their food and where it came from.  They had obviously not been taught “real food basics” at home or in school.  Are any of you struggling with how and what to teach your kids about our food system and healthy eating? 

If so, here are some topics for family discussion to help you get started:

What are Whole Foods?  I tell kids that whole foods are recognizable in nature.  If it’s on your plate, and you can imagine it growing or living in nature, it’s probably a whole food.  Some “whole foods” can be made with other whole food ingredients, such as whole grain breads or soups and stews.  Get your kids to go through the fridge or pantry and identify as many whole foods as they can.  Make a meal that evening together out of only whole foods.  Take a trip to the local Farmers’ Market and discuss how the foods available there differ from those available at the supermarket.

What are Processed Foods? The easiest way to define these for kids is to say processed foods are made in a factory, and have lots of unnatural ingredients added (things you can’t easily identify in nature).  Show your kids the ingredient list on processed food, then compare that to the one ingredient whole foods.  Explain how chemicals are used to preserve, color and flavour processed foods.  Talk about the “less than 5 ingredients” guideline for packaged foods, or the idea of “not eating anything if you don’t know what it is”.

 Where does our meat come from?  I sometimes get push-back from parents on this one, but doesn’t it seem crazy that we are raising a generation of kids who don’t realize that the “chicken” in their chicken nuggets is meat from a bird?  (And if it isn’t, go back to the processed foods discussion!)  Talk to them about the importance of knowing where the animals we eat are raised and how they are treated and fed.  The meat farmers at our local Farmers’ Markets love to talk about the care they put into raising their animals!  Just ask them!

Organic v. Commercially-Farmed Produce: Kids should know that while it is often cheaper and easier to produce fruits and veggies by using chemicals, too many of those chemicals can be harmful to our health and the planet. We need to choose carefully, and buy organic and local when we can. Take your kids to an organic farm, or start growing some tomatoes or zucchini in the backyard.  Help them to appreciate the work and love that goes into producing natural food.  This will also show them how tasty fresh organic food can be!

Don’t be afraid of these topics.  Kids are smart and they want to learn.  And most of all, kids want to feel great and be healthy.  Who knows, you might just learn a little something new in the process too!

Wendy McCallum, LLB, RHN, is passionate about providing busy parents with the tools & support they need to feed their families wholesome food, so everyone can play, learn, and feel better!  She is a mother of two terrific HRM kids, ages 6 & 7.  For more great information and recipe ideas, visit her website