New Haven Independent

Posted by: cedarhillresident | December 2, 2008 12:33 PM

A Big Bravo!!! We must remember even as adults changing ones diet to a healthier one takes time. I think the kids will take to it the ways they are introducing it. Again Bravo!

Posted by: AW | December 2, 2008 12:42 PM

I think you meant:

"In the interest of scientific exploration, this PESCETARIAN reporter opted for the tuna..."

Posted by: Joe | December 2, 2008 1:14 PM

Thank you, AW.

So: was there an actual vegetarian option?

Posted by: streever | December 2, 2008 5:19 PM

Joe, AW,
What makes you so sure?

Maybe she's a vegetarian who ate tuna this one time because there was nothing else?
Do you get to determine who is a good adherent to their beliefs?

I'm a cycling commuter.
If you saw me drive a car, would you get to determine I'm no longer such?

Get over yourselves :D

congrats to the school system for pulling this off--this is the type of thing we need more of

Posted by: urban ed | December 2, 2008 5:34 PM

As a NH school administrator, I have been generally pleased with the new food service. I eat the school lunch every day (I'd like to say something noble like I won't subject my kids to anything I won't subject myself to, but the truth is I eat on the run, and it's there. It's a good day when I can eat it sitting down.) And there has been definite improvement this year. Roasted chicken--A- Mashed squash--A suprising A+! Even the standard burgers and chicken patties are at least of higher quality (B-), and it's nice to have greens other than iceburg lettuce (B+). And THANK YOU for reducing the weekly chicken nugget ration to a monthly one.

Some stuff is still kinda rough, and I still tell the kids my school lunch credo: "Hot sauce makes everything better!" But, overall the improvement is notable.

Thanks for mentioning the yucky ketchup (catsup? cat soup?) and here's hoping the new condiment vendor will also make brown mustard available.

And what hapened to my Caesar dressing? Geez.

Posted by: John Tulin | December 2, 2008 7:18 PM

Great comments NH Admin, thanks. And Amen on the hot sauce.....as a teacher, I know it makes those chicken patties all the better! I hope you get more time to see and eat around the kids - it can make all the difference in changing a wild cafe into a "community of eaters".

Posted by: Jonathryn | December 3, 2008 12:18 AM

My kid goes to a NH school, and I can't emphasize how important this change is for all the children who attend NH schools. Parents are busy, eating healthy can take more prep time, and convenience foods have caused an epidemic of childhood obesity, diabetes, and lifelong health problems for an entire generation of children. Fat- and sugar-saturated diets lacking essential nutrients are also thought to lead to behavioral problems. The Aramark-provided food was unappealing, institutional, and almost never provided anything fresh.

Kudos to this wise decision on the part of the school district to provide lunches made from scratch including lots of fresh vegetables and fruits.

Posted by: Lance | December 3, 2008 5:11 AM

Who said there's no such thing as a free lunch?

Posted by: tired | December 3, 2008 2:35 PM

streever- vegetarians don't eat fish. it's not determining someone's beliefs, it's knowing a definition.

Posted by: AW | December 3, 2008 4:32 PM

Do New Haven schools provide any vegetarian options for their students? There is a misconception that providing a fish option on the menu would be suitable for a vegetarian. By definition, vegetarians don't eat animals. Pescetarianism is a legit diet choice, but it is not vegetarianism. No high horse here.

Streever, as far as I know, vegetarians generally don't just eat whatever meat is in front of them because there's nothing else immediately available. The author of the article didn't need to say "this vegetarian picked the fish" as if that was the logical choice. Why not just say she picked the fish? Stating fish was picked because of vegetarianism perpetuates the incorrect assumption that fish is a vegetarian food. Some people aren't familiar with the more accurate term "pescetarian" so I thought I was being helpful. Or perhaps she's a "flexatarian" that generally makes meatless choices, but in a bind will eat whatever is served so as not to waste food. I understand that it might not matter to you, but it does matter to many people.

Posted by: Melinda Tuhus | December 3, 2008 6:01 PM

I guess I didn't make clear that I am a pretty strict vegetarian (no animals), but, "In the interest of scientific exploration," I was willing to eat tuna one time. I certainly wasn't going to eat a hamburger! (Only a veggie burger :) So if I was going to sample the lunch options available to the kids, that was my only choice. I well know there's a difference between a vegetarian and a pescetarian.

So in this case I was also a "flexatarian."

Posted by: Streever | December 4, 2008 11:12 AM

AW,

your comment was rude, and demonstrated a lack of comprehension. sorry you feel the need to continue to explore your lack of reading comprehension.

Melinda,
it was clear from the article that you are a vegetarian who made a conscious decision to eat unlike such one time. AW and the rest didn't understand it because they hastily rushed in to demonstrate just how clever & smart they are.

Tired,
did you read my comment?

Just imagine a vegetarian locked in a room, dying of hunger, and all there is to eat--a can of tuna fish. Literally starving to death. Does eating that can of tuna make them "not a vegetarian"?

sorry, but you bozos don't get to determine what someone else believes. Melinda is a vegetarian & adheres to it. No need for you to throw your opinion about her around.

Posted by: branfordrules | December 4, 2008 12:48 PM

Streever,

I was initially taken aback by AW's capitalization of "pescetarian" as well, though as a vegan myself, I inferred after reading the article that there were few vegetarian/vegan options availble to these kids other than side-dishes. This is an important concern to many of us and it appeared that this is what AW was getting at.

Regardless, I think that belittling AW and Tired is far more distasteful, especially after their responses to you. By her own admission, Ms. Tuhus (who writes a great article and makes some delicious vegan snacks) is flexible with her diet (though I'll kindly suggest that ovo-lacto vegetarians are being just as flexible themselves, but that's splitting hairs).

As a personal note, any decision to lessen one's impact on this planet is a admirable choice, and I don't mean to suggest that Ms. Tuhus's beliefs and actions are inauthentic. I can understand, David, why you felt like you had to stand up for her (itself a cool thing to do), but to call people bozos and suggest that they don't comprehend the import of the article is rather ugly.

Posted by: AW | December 4, 2008 3:17 PM

Streever-- I capitalized pescetarian for emphasis because I don't know HTML. You sure did infer a lot from a single sentence. Others seemed to understand my intention. You're a bully on this site and have failed to have an intelligent, civilized discussion. Melinda clarified nicely, so what is your problem? Maybe you should stick to commenting on bicycle articles (haha).

To get back to the story at hand regarding vegetarian (and vegan) options, I think it is unfortunate that they seem to be relegated to mere side dishes. One of great things about New Haven is the City Seed program so I would hope fresh, local fruits and veggies would get more of a starring role. Also, incorporating more legumes and whole grains (staples to many non-animal based diets) would not only be healthy, but cheap too.

Posted by: Mr. Stephen Peter Ross | December 5, 2008 12:21 PM

Oops! I'm unlear why I had my name listed as "Branfordrules," David, but I just thought I'd repost to clarify that it's me who is writing (and who you should attack upon sight!).

Posted by: Streever | December 5, 2008 2:28 PM

I just think it was snotty to correct Melinda on this, AW! You were being rude, and then for Joe to chime in with a "thanks for that"!

You act like you're doing something noble ("Stating fish was picked because of vegetarianism perpetuates the incorrect assumption that fish is a vegetarian food.") but:

a. you could have done it politely
b. you're wrong and you felt the need to show off despite the fact being that it was your inability to comprehend the sentence.

As to me being a bully, that's fine, I use my real name & don't honestly think that "bullying" is possible against anonymous people on a comments board. Bullying? Did I scare you? Did I make you nervous? That's pretty sad.

SPR: I think you know I'm not going to "attack" you ;-). You may think it's ugly, but it's clear that they didn't understand what she was writing. I think piling on to criticize someone & state your manifesto (esp. anonymously) is a far less elegant choice. I'm comfortable agreeing to disagree with you on this one: I don't have any empathy for anonymous know-it-alls, especially when they are incorrect.

I maintain that this is no different then me accusing a cycling commuter of being a liar if he/she drives once in a blue moon: rude, unwarranted, self-important, & ultimately ugly.

Calling others out on being inauthentic just seems ludicrously stupid to me. I wasn't aware there was a vegetarian board that got to make these designations, but I'll accept that I'm wrong, and accept the judgement that Melinda is a pescatarian, even if she never bites into fish again for the rest of her life.