Episode 21: Fueling Our Schools

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The Produce Moms Podcast

Episode 21: Fueling Our Schools with Marc Blake, VP of Business for the National Dairy Council and Mac Riggen, Director of Marketing for Chelan Fresh

“It’s about total nutrition. Fruits. Vegetables. Whole grain, along with low-fat and fat-free dairy.”

This week on The Produce Moms Podcast, Lori spends time chatting with Marc Blake, Vice President of Business for the National Dairy Council and Mac Riggen, Director of Marketing for Chelan Fresh. Chelan Fresh is a Washington-based produce provider of pears, apples and cherries. Chelan Fresh has been collaborating with the Dairy Council, the USDA, and the NFL for the past 7 years in a program called Fuel Up to Play 60. Fuel Up to Play 60 is a nutrition and physical activity program implemented in schools to help encourage healthier lifestyles in our youth.

“We’ve seen the environment change. 14 million students eating healthier and 18 million students more physically active through this program.”

Mac and Marc discuss a new program launching that will place breakfast and salad bar carts in schools around the nation. Their mission is to provide more nutritious options for our students, that will lead to greater impact in their academic performance, and ultimate success in life. Through this current endeavor, over 9000 students will benefit, and over 1.3 million nutrient dense meals will be provided.

This episode demonstrates the way different companies and councils in the food industry are coming together to help impact the produce industry in a healthy way!

“We know when these students are fed breakfast and lunch, they do better on tests, they go to class, they have a higher graduation rate… things we have seen in some of our research.”

If you would like to find out more about Fuel Up to Play 60 visit fueluptoplay60.com. More information about Chelan Fresh can be found at chelanfresh.com and the National Dairy Council’s website nationaldairycouncil.org is full of resources and recipes!

Some Topics we talk about in this episode:

  • Introduction // Guest – 0:56
  • What Is Fuel Up to Play 60? – 3:40
  • What is Ahead for Fuel Up to Play 60? – 9:36
  • USDA School Meals – 12:52
  • What Food Items Are on These Carts? – 15:02
  • The Impact of the Food Carts – 17:25
  • Wrap-up – 20:02

How to get involved

The Produce Moms Podcast is live on iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, and coming soon to Spotify.  If you like what you are hearing on the podcast, reviews, subscriptions & ratings will help us keep this going!  It would mean the world to hear your feedback, and we’d love for you to help us spread the word!

Episode 21: Fueling Up Schools

Other Episode You May Like

Episode 20: Feeding the Nation

Episode 19: Pulp Fact of Fiction

Episode 18: Spittin’ Seeds with the Watermelon Board

Episode 17: Improving Fast Food Nutrition at Taco Bell

About Lori

Lori Taylor is the Founder & CEO of The Produce Moms. For ten years she sold fresh produce to over 300 grocery stores throughout the United States, and today she is fully focused on working with the produce supply chain, media, and government to increase fresh produce access & consumption in the US and around the globe. Connect with Lori on LinkedIn.

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