Did you know that at Bayside Elementary School in the Sausalito Marin City School District 98% of students receive government subsidized meals? At Martin Luther King, Jr. Academy, also in Marin City, 78% of the student body receives free or reduced price lunch provided by government subsidies, and at Bahia Vista Elementary School in San Rafael, it’s 80%.

Did you know that some schools in Marin serve airplane-style lunches manufactured in Chicago that are then shipped to San Jose for distribution in Marin County? (Total: 2,135 miles!)

In Marin County, the fifth wealthiest county in the nation, many of our children’s school lunches consist of pre-packaged, heavily processed and nutrient-deficient foods that come served with a gigantic carbon footprint. For some children of low-income households, this is the most balanced meal they will eat in a day.

Our youth deserve better. Students, regardless of school district or income level, must be fed nutritious, fresh food that, in turn, supports local agriculture, community and economy.

Enter the Project Lunch Stakeholder Collaborative. Spearheaded by Teens Turning Green, the Project Lunch Stakeholder Collaborative is an unprecedented initiative uniting more than 100 local constituents including: students, teachers, administrators, food service directors, community members, non-profits, farmers, chefs, food purveyors and grocers, with the aim of greening school lunch programs across Marin County and serving as a model for all school districts. Through the Collaborative’s collective wisdom, resources and strategic alliances, a Platinum standard is being constructed to ensure that every child in every Marin school is nourished with wholesome, locally-sourced, seasonal and organic food that produces zero waste and a small carbon footprint across each aspect of food service.

Raise Your Hand.

If you would like to directly participate in improving the quality of lunch and food education in Marin’s resource-poor schools, then please raise your hand to support this unique, collaborative movement. Your contribution is an investment in our community and the health of all kids in classrooms and cafeterias across Marin.

To support Marin Organic and the Project Lunch Stakeholder Collaborative please make a donation on-line via PayPal, below; OR, send a check with memo “Project Lunch” to: Marin Organic – PO Box 962 – Point Reyes Station, CA – 94956; OR, call the Marin Organic office at 415-663-9667.

Thank you for supporting healthy food in schools across Marin!