|
|
News Articles |
 |
Welcome to Food
For Thought Catering News page. Check
this page periodically for upcoming events and company news!
|
|
|
F4TC Serves over 2,000,000 lunches since 1995
(08/02/2007)
With over 2,000,000 lunches served since 1995 we know how to cater. Period. It is this experience that will allow you to faithfully place you trust in us to provide for your children. Our facilities have grown from renting space within a restaurant in Alamo to owning our 4000 sq ft facilities in Concord. We make our own breads, sauces and dressings to control all aspects of the nutritional input for each meal. That means, no preservatives, no chemicals, and allergy controls (peanut for example) to insure safety. Nothing frozen or processed so that your children can enjoy their lunches as though you took the time to make them yourself.
Fitness for kids: Getting your children off the couch
(06/17/2007)
For many children, biking to the playground and playing kickball in the backyard have given way to watching television, playing video games and spending hours online. But it's never too late to get your kids off the couch. Use these simple tips to give your kids a lifelong appreciation for activities that strengthen their bodies.
Set a good example
If you want active kids, be active yourself. Take the stairs instead of the elevator. Park the car farther away from your destination. Talk about physical activity as an opportunity to take care of your body, rather than a punishment or a chore.
"A parent's active lifestyle is a powerful stimulus for a child," says Edward Laskowski, M.D., a specialist in physical medicine and rehabilitation and co-director of the Sports Medicine Center at Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. "Set a good example for your children by making physical activity a priority."
Limit screen time
A surefire way to increase your children's activity levels is to limit the number of hours they're allowed to watch television each day. You might limit screen time — including television, video games and computer time — to two hours a day. To make it easier, don't put a television in your children's bedrooms, and keep the computer in a family area. Also limit other sedentary activities, such as text messaging or chatting on the phone.
If your children play video games, opt for those that require movement. Activity-oriented video games — such as dance video games and video games that use a player's physical movements to control what happens on the screen — boost a child's calorie-burning power. In a Mayo Clinic study, kids who traded sedentary screen time for active screen time more than doubled their energy expenditure.
Establish a routine
Set aside time each day for physical activity. Get up early with your children to walk the dog or do jumping jacks together after dinner. Start small, gradually adding new activities to the routine as you — and your children — become more fit.
Let your children set the pace
For many kids, organized sports are a great way to stay fit. But team sports or dance classes aren't the only options. If your child is artistically inclined, take a nature hike to collect leaves and rocks that your child can use to make a collage. If your child likes to climb, head for the nearest neighborhood jungle gym. If your child likes to read, walk or bike to the neighborhood library for a book. Or simply turn on your child's favorite music and dance in the living room.
"Every child is wired differently," Dr. Laskowski says. "We all have certain strengths and characteristics that influence our interests. The key is finding things that your children like to do."
Promote activity, not exercise
To keep your kids interested in fitness, make it fun.
Be silly. Let younger children see how much fun you can have while being active. Run like a gorilla. Walk like a spider. Hop like a bunny. Stretch like a cat.
Get in the game. Play catch, get the whole family involved in a game of tag or have a jump-rope contest. Try classic movement games such as Simon says or red light, green light. If you don't remember the rules, make up your own!
Count your chores. You might even make it a friendly challenge. Who can pull the most weeds out of the vegetable garden? Who can collect the most litter in the neighborhood? Who can shovel the craziest path in the snow?
Try an activity party. For your child's next birthday, schedule a bowling party, take the kids to a climbing wall or set up relay races in the backyard.
Put your kids in charge. Let each child take a turn choosing the activity of the day or week. Batting cages, bowling and fast-food play areas all count. What matters is that you're doing something active.
"Incorporating physical activity into your children's lives does much more than promote a healthy weight," Dr. Laskowski says. "It sets the foundation for a lifetime of fitness and good health."
Farm Fresh Lunches
(9/6/2007)
September 5, 2007 -- From locally grown watermelon in Portland, Ore. to farm fresh squash in Bloomfield, Conn., school nutrition programs around the nation are increasingly turning to local farmers for fresh produce. Farm to school programs consist of a wide variety of programs that include school gardens, nutrition education, and the opportunity to purchase fresh, locally grown farm products for use in the National School Lunch and School Breakfast programs. These types of programs have been in existence for over 10 years, but have recently seen rapid growth. Current estimates indicate over 950 farm to school programs operate in 35 states and this number continues to increase. The benefits of these programs include the availability of fresher produce for meal programs, increased opportunities for hands-on nutrition education in the classroom, and new markets with stable revenues for local farmers.
Research has highlighted the success and effectiveness of these programs. Studies have shown school lunch participation, by students and teachers, increases with farm to school program participation. Students on average eat significantly more servings of fruits and vegetables. Increased participation and consumption can result in enhanced revenues for school nutrition programs as well. Farm to school programs also offer additional educational opportunities such as farm tours, farmer visits to the classroom, school gardens, waste management and recycling programs.
While past federal legislation has encouraged and supported farm to school programs, such programs have become increasingly popular at the state legislative level. Language that passed in the U.S. House of Representatives version of the Farm Bill in July would allow school food authorities to include geographic preference as part of their bids to help encourage locally grown produce in schools. Several states are leading the trend by implementing programs that promote the sale of locally grown produce as well as other farm products in schools.
Colorado implemented the Fresh Fruits and Vegetables Pilot Program in 2006, which gives schools the opportunity to provide fruits and vegetables to students at no charge. The pilot will continue through the 2007-2008 school year. (SB 127)
The Oklahoma Farm to School Program was created in 2006 with the goals of providing fresh and minimally processed farm commodities for use in school meals and snacks, developing relationships between schools and local farms and increasing new marketing opportunities for farmers. (HB 2655)
The Vermont Farm to School program awards local grants to schools and school districts. The grants can be used to purchase Vermont based produce and dairy products, fund equipment and training to increase the use of local foods and provide professional development for teachers. (HB 91)
While there can be challenges to overcome when establishing a farm to school program, there also tools and resources available. Proper bid language, food safety concerns and an ample, consistent and quality product are all possible barriers to successful farm to school programs. To organize a farm to school program requires the support of farmers, schools, parents and community groups. The USDA provides a wealth of information on how to implement your own farm to school program including a handbook titled, “Eat Smart—Farm Fresh! A Guide to Buying and Serving Locally-Grown Produce in School Meals”. It may also be helpful to visit local farmers markets or contact community agencies that work with farmers, such as Farmers Market Associations, Farm Bureaus, and Cooperative Extension Services, in order to develop a relationship with your own local farmers. More resource information is available through Related Links.
School nutrition professionals are vital to the design, implementation and success of a farm to school program. Together, schools and farms can develop a relationship that benefits both students and communities.
Child-Safety Experts Call For Restrictions On Childhood Imagination
(6/13/2007)
WASHINGTON, DC—The Department of Health and Human Services issued a series of guidelines Monday designed to help parents curtail their children's boundless imaginations, which child-safety advocates say have the potential to rival motor vehicle accidents and congenital diseases as a leading cause of disability and death among youths ages 3 to 14.
Enlarge Image
Jill Tyn, 4, perilously close to danger.
"Defuse the ticking time-bomb known as your child's imagination before it explodes and destroys her completely," said child-safety expert Kenneth McMillan, who advised the HHS in composing the guidelines. "New data shows a disturbing correlation between serious accidents and the ability of children to envision a world full of exciting possibility."
The guidelines, titled "Boundless Imagination, Boundless Hazards: Ways To Keep Your Kids Safe From A World Of Wonder," are posted on the HHS website, and will also be available in brochure form in pediatricians' offices across the country.
According to McMillan, children can suffer broken bones, head trauma, and even fatal injuries from unsupervised exposure to childlike awe. "If your children are allowed to unlock their imaginations, anything from a backyard swing set to a child's own bedroom can be transformed into a dangerous undersea castle or dragon's lair," McMillan said. "But by encouraging your kids to think linearly and literally, and constantly reminding them they can never be anything but human children with no extraordinary characteristics, you can better ensure that they will lead prolonged lives."
Although the exact number of child fatalities connected to an active imagination is unknown, experts say the danger is very real. According to a 2006 estimate, children who regularly engage in imagination are 10 times more likely to suffer injuries such as skinned knees from mythical quests, or bruises and serious falls from the peak of Bookcase Mountain.
One of the HHS recommendations emphasizes increased communication between parents and children about the truths behind outlandish fantasies. "Speak with your children about the absolute impossibility of time travel, magical powers, and animals and toys that talk when adults are not around," reads one excerpt. "If this fails to quell their imaginations, encourage them to stare at household objects and think clearly and objectively about their actual, physical characteristics."
The HHS also discourages aimless playtime activities that lack a rigid, repetitive structure: "Opt instead for safe activities like untying knots, sticking and unsticking two pieces of Velcro, drawing straight lines of successively longer lengths, and quietly humming a single note for two to three hours."
But even these relatively safe activities can become imaginative, experts warn, without proper precautions. "Do not let children know that, for example, sailors and pirates untie knots," McMillan said.
Although no cure has yet been developed for childhood imagination, preventative measures can deter children from potentially hazardous bouts of make-believe.
"Many of the suggestions are really quite simple, like breaking down cardboard boxes or sewing cushions to couches so they cannot be converted into forts or playhouses," McMillan said. "Blank pieces of paper, which can inspire non-reality-based drawings, should be discarded unless they are used in one of our recommended diagonal folding and unfolding activities. And all loose sticks left lying in the yard should be carefully labeled 'Not a Sword.'"
Unfortunately, removing everything from a child's field of view that could stimulate his active young mind is extremely time-consuming, and infeasible as a long-term solution, McMillan acknowledges. "To truly protect your children, you must go to great lengths to completely eliminate their curiosity, crush their spirit of amazement, and eradicate their childlike glee. Watch for the danger signs: faraway expressions, giggle fits, and a general air of carefree contentment."
Added McMillan: "Remember, if you see a single sparkle of excitement in their eyes, you haven't done enough."
|
|
|
|