AURORA | The city of Aurora’s after school meal program has been awarded a Turnip the Beet silver medal by the U.S. Department of Agriculture for its continued offering of high-quality programming and dedication to child nutrition.
Aurora is the only municipality in the country to win the award.
The goal of Turnip the Beet award is to showcase summer meal programs from across the country that are going above and beyond to ensure their meals are both nutritious and appetizing.
Applications for this award were evaluated on a list of criteria, including serving local foods, serving a variety of vegetables and fruits throughout the week, serving whole grains and low-fat or fat-free dairy products, and serving culturally appropriate meals. A total of 49 programs earned a bronze, silver or gold award for their efforts in 2016.
The city of Aurora demonstrated excellence in a variety of ways, like providing fresh fruit daily, conducting taste tests with the children (and incorporating the feedback into the menus), serving a variety of whole grains, and offering nutrition education activities along with the meals.
Summer meals are critical in the lives of millions of our nation’s youth, whose risk of food insecurity increases during the summer months when they no longer have access to the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) and the School Breakfast Program. However, summer meals are not simply about preventing hunger. In fact, the Federal summer meal programs, including the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) and the Seamless Summer Option (SSO) within the NSLP, have the opportunity to positively impact children’s growth and development by offering nutritious meals and encouraging children to develop healthy habits at a young age. High-quality summer meals provide energy day-to-day, and help make sure children are healthy and ready to learn when they return to school in the fall.
For more information on the city of Aurora’s After School Meal Program, visit AuroraGov.org/Recreation or call 303.326.8705.