Food Allergies and the School Nutrition Association Convention

Those of you who are parents of children with food allergies may be interested in the recent School Nutrition Association Convention in Philadelphia.  

From www.philly.com: 

"The three-day convention...drew thousands of cafeteria workers from around the nation. They were treated to a taste-test of the latest and tastiest foods from more than 400 vendors and exhibitors.

The variety and nutritional value of the foods offered - reduced fat and whole grains were buzzwords on the convention floor - reflected the evolving palette of today's youngsters. While vegetarianism was comparatively rare a few decades ago, many students now refuse to eat meat or animal products. And many have allergies to ingredients like peanuts or gluten, which are common in many foods."  (emphasis in bold added)

To read the July 23 article in its entirety, see "Convention offers new foods for school lunches."

In addition, if you visit the School Nutrition Association's website, you can view some of the handouts and presentations from the conference.  I spotted one that looked interesting entitled "Food Allergies...the Hidden Time Bomb" by Doug Wordell, RD of Spokane Public Schools.  Take a look at it.  I do not think our town has such comprehensive plans in place for food allergies--does yours?