Supporting children’s health
Yang takes us on a tour of the school’s “edible landscaping,” after which she hurries to a classroom to give a nutrition class. She uses a video produced by the Formosa Cancer Foundation stressing the value of fruit and vegetables in combating disease, and explains the “579 rule” for consuming “rainbow” produce (five servings a day for children, seven for adult women, and nine for adult men). The second-grade students listen attentively to her lively teaching.
Yang says that besides being nutritious, campus meals also need to be visually appealing, fragrant, and tasty. To reduce food miles and purchase costs for ingredients, she uses large amounts of fruits and vegetables produced in areas near the school, although she also sources some items from further afield, such as through a contract with a vegetable production and marketing group in Yunlin County.
We see the students eating lunch, which the majority do with gusto. Some help themselves to seconds of rice or curry, and some even say, “I really like eating greens.”
Yang avers that health is one of the pillars of national strength, and well-prepared, nutritious food can help maintain health into old age, thereby reducing the country’s healthcare expenditures. In addition, students can learn about foreign cultures through food.
Dietitian Yang Jui Ping is shown here teaching a nutrition class in which she explains to students the health benefits of the “579 rule” for consuming fruits and vegetables.