Chef Nicole Straight Attends White House Forum

Chef Nicole Straight recently made a trip to the White House to support Michelle Obama's "Let's Move!" campaign, which aims to solve the childhood obesity epidemic.

The concept of healthy eating is a cause that is near and dear to the Westporter's heart. She began her local business -- Time to Eat! (www.timetoeat.info)  -- nine years ago to teach the preparation of tasty and healthy meals in a 15-minute time frame. Along the way, she has become a vocal supporter of school lunch reform in Westport.

Her trip to Washington, D.C., she says, "was amazing."

"I'm trying to get people to eat healthy at school and at home," she explains.  "The experience in Washington, D.C, was almost surreal. There were 400 people in white coats from around the country sitting on the South Lawn of the White House. There were two hours of great speakers at this event.

"The premise of Michelle Obama's campaign is to get kids healthy in every way," she explains. "This forum addressed kids' access to fruits and vegetables and whole grains as well as meat that is not processed."

As part of her effort to turn policies into practical solutions for America's families, Mrs. Obama is calling on chefs to get involved by adopting a school and working with teachers, parents, school nutritionists and administrators to help educate kids about food and nutrition.

Straight, who applauds the first lady's challenge, says that she has been pushing the Westport school system to embrace school lunch reform, but her suggestions have "sunk like a stone."

"The school administration is dragging its feet and the principals are powerless to make changes," Straight said.

She points out that schools are serving an abundance of processed foods and resisting the idea of adding a salad and soup bars to lunchtime offerings. "I see the types of foods that kids are eating at school and the meals that are served are not healthy," Straight says. "Kids are getting chicken nuggets and tater tots, when they could be getting an identifiable piece of chicken, like a drumstick, and a baked potato.

"I don't understand why our kids are being offered such unhealthy lunches at school, this has to change," she said. "So much money is being spent on the intellectual development of the children in Westport, yet there is a drastic disconnection when it comes to education about the foods they eat."

Straight will step back up to the plate in September. "I am now a member a food representative at Greens Farms Elementary School, which both of my children attend. As a food rep, I am allowed to speak during meetings and I plan to address these issues," she says.

When school resumes, Straight says she plans to come in armed and ready to do battle for local school lunch reform. "I have statistics about school systems that have less funding than the town of Westport, and these locations have successfully implemented school lunch reform programs," she says. "I want to help kids learn to eat well at school and at home."

Straight said she very much wants to work with the Westport school system to implement healthy changes for the student body. "It's win-win, all the way around" she said. "I have a master's degree in education and I know that healthy eating is something that can be worked into curriculum at all levels. Cooking involves math. It involves social studies. You can draw all of these components together for any age group."

A prepared statement released by U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack supports the First Lady's campaign and endorses Straight's message: "Chefs and nutrition experts can play a critical role in addressing the childhood obesity crisis and they are welcome partners as we work together to improve the overall health and nutrition of America's children," he said. "By passing a strong reauthorization of the Child Nutrition Act, Congress can provide important resources to improve school cafeteria equipment and expand training opportunities for chefs, school food service personnel, and nutrition experts in our schools, because they will be on the front lines of improving school meals for our kids."

Straight offers recipes and suggestions for healthy eating on her web site. She also shares recipes and presents cooking demonstrations on CT Bites (www.ct bites.com).

Presently, on CT Bites features  weekly segments in which  Straight creates healthy meals inspired by items she purchases at local farmers markets.