How do I get my school district to eat only organic foods?

Question

I'm 13 and want to get my school district to go all organic. I want to bring in people from wegmans and whole foods(2 organic food stores) and have them try and convince my district to eat only organic food. I made a power point presentation, and have the support of my mom and two best friends and they will come with me to the school board meeting, but my dad said it won't work because i'm only in 7th grade...what can I do to make us eat only organic foods? Also...I dont mean veggitarian and vegan, just foods that aren't genetically engineered and food without pesticides.

Answer 1

Great idea. Do not be discouraged by some of the idiotic answers that have been posted. This will not be easy, due to the perceived extra costs.

You need to see the movie Super Size Me. Get it from your library or Amazon ($10-$12). There is a segment of the movie that talks about school lunches, and the nasty junk that is served in schools. They also show a test school that switched to healthy, non-GMO (organic?) food. They made the switch at NO ADDITIONAL COST (very important). They also got rid of soda and candy in the vending machines, and put in fruit, water and juice, etc. This school was a school of troubled kids- juvenile delinquents, other problem kids. After they switched to healthier food, the kids stopped fighting and started paying attention in school. The kids were learning, and the on-site police officer noted that there was no more trouble at the school. Try to contact Morgan Spurlock, who made the movie, for advice. Make that segment of the movie part of your presentation.

Also read the book Fast Food Nation. Great info regarding poisoned conventional meat, food additives, etc. Try to contact the author, Eric Schlosser for advice.

Gov. Schwarzenegger of CA is trying to get junk food out of schools. Look up the State of CA website and try to contact him. He may get a ton of email, but he may respond to you because you are in the 7th grade.

Good luck! You are the future of our country. Your voice needs to be heard.

Answer 2

I think you have a great opportunity if you re-structure your concept and approach.

You can see from the answers you are getting that there are very big differences in opinions about "natural or organic" products vs products grown with todays standard practices (using chemicals, hormones, etc). Nutrition, short-term costs, long-term costs (health issues, for example), environmental impacts, sustainability, energy consumption, verifying standards from beginning to end - these are just some of the components involved in your idea.

Personally, I think having a group of teachers and students your age research and debate this issue, and if possible even produce a conclusion paper about the subject of "Are we better off eating organically grown foods - why or why not?" is the route you should go. (You don't need anyone's approval to do this. You need other people to agree to help - including people whose current opinion may be different than yours.)

With such an effort and report - individuals could choose what to do - for themselves, including school boards.

Having such a group thoroughly research the subject in an academic environment (class, school or district) would be viewed as absolutely appropriate. Reading, writing, math, research skills, analyzing skills, debating skills - all rolled into one project. That's a win for everyone!

I am pleased to find a 13 year old thinking about such important things. Congratulations to you! Happy New Year!

Answer 3

Great idea, but you seem to be forgetting that these foods are not cheap or free...something essential in most publicly funded schools. Try to get a grant from the state you live in, or even try to find local sponsors. Maybe you can start off this new lifestyle with "Organic Day." One day a week food will be brought in for the students' lunches. Then if it's a hit, maybe you can push for everyday organic lunch (providing you receive funding).

Good luck!

Answer 4

Ridiculous
First no one has proven any nutritional difference in organics
the extra cost should not be born by the tax payers just for food psychotics.. organics are fear food..
You can not prove organics are pesticide free at the time of purchase... ONLY in the field ..
Not the truck Not the warehouse Not the wholesaler Not the storeroom Not the counter shelf Not the check-out register..
should such nonsense occur Not the School food locker or the kitchen.. foolishness..
school lunches should be paid by students parents
the schools budgets are already maxed out..and are the largest budget item in the tax system.

Answer 5

What give you the right to force your ideas on others? I actually prefer food with all the chemicals, and when it's been genetically improved.

We eat this stuff every day, and we're living longer than ever before, right?

I'd rather eat preservatives than rotten food, and I'd rather eat pesticides than bugs.

And we've been eating genetically modified food for centuries. Scientists and farmers have been cross-breeding plants for a very long time. They say that the corn served at the first Thanksgiving, in 1621, would hardly be recognizable as corn today. Man uses his knowledge and ability to improve on nature, and I'd rather benefit from this knowlege, than go back to eating the inferior food of our ancestors.

Happy New Year!

Answer 6

donate millions of dollars to make up the short fall in costs
organic (though VERY worth it) are way more expensive than commecially grown produce due to lower growth success rates
unfortunately not everyone can afford to eat purely organic foods, sad but true
here in the uk a programme was set up to get schools involved in healthy eating initiatives, they brought in a famous chef, Jamie Oliver to devise menus that would cost the same, but were healthy alternatives to normal school meals, they proved child productivity increased during this and so may be you should be looking to incorporate something like this, it was not however organic, it just would not be cost effective, i buy organic and find i pay approx 35-45% more for my produce, not many people can consistantly afford to do this


here is a link for the programme i told you about, it might give you some tips
http://www.jamieoliver.com/schooldinners/

Answer 7

I think you have made a wonderful start. You definitely need to get the support of the school board....i think the only problem will be the cost of the organic foods. Bummer.

Answer 8

I wish you luck, Honey. But keep in mind that the guys you're talking to are going to be more interested in money than anything else. I'm afraid your dad's right in his skepticism.

Still, if you can prove that eating organic and locally will have benefits- such as lower medical costs- you might have a chance.

Good luck!

Answer 9

YOU DON'T

If you don't like what they serve, brown bag it!