October 15-18 is National School Lunch Week (NSLW), and IDEA is joining the celebration with a week of celebratory activities and delicious lunches! 

This year’s NSLW celebration’s theme is “Save the Day with a Healthy School Lunch” and will include a carefully selected menu aimed at increasing lunch participation and giving heightened visibility to our school lunch program. Each day, school cafeterias will celebrate with fun ways to promote eating a healthy lunch in a creative way.   

National School Lunch Week (NSLW) was created in 1962 by President John F. Kennedy as a week-long national observance of events and activities designed to promote the benefits of the National School Lunch Program (NSLP).  

The event recognizes the importance of a healthy school lunch in a child’s life, and the impact it has inside and outside of the classroom.  

School nutrition programs play a critical role in ensuring all students receive nutritious lunches that follow strict federal nutrition standards, regardless of income level. In the U.S., nearly 30 million students are served healthy lunches at school each day—that’s 5 billion annually! 

IDEA regularly partners with communities to improve the health and well-being of whole families. Through our Healthy Kids Here program, we are committed to offering well-balanced, farm fresh and nutritious meals to every student and encouraging a healthy and active lifestyle for our Team & Family. The program provides educational information on health, wellness and nutrition, increasing access to healthy food, and hosts 5Ks in each IDEA region to get the whole family involved in healthy activities, while also raising money for college scholarships.   

Currently, IDEA has four school farms and two Leafy Green Machine hydroponic units that provide more than 20,000 pounds of fresh vegetables to our cafeterias and communities each year. 

Happy National School Lunch Week, IDEA!