Cornell Center Studies Lunchroom Nutrition

Cornell Professor David Just is a member of a team of researchers at the University's Center of Behavioral Economics in Child Nutrition Programs looking very closely at the tightly regulated school lunch program. "Usually when we speak to school lunch people they start to shudder," he said.

Schools are required to follow strict guidelines in what they serve. As they increase the number of healthier options, however, they observe participation decline. Cornell's center aims to resolve that through low-cost or no-cost solutions.

Already, researchers have come up with some interesting, if not common sense, findings. Placing white milk in front of chocolate milk, for example, leads to an increase in sales of white milk by 30 percent.

Similarly, moving salads up front and asking the student if they'd like a serving, increases sales by 300 percent. "Having an opaque door in front of the ice cream freezer instead of clear glass, that causes fewer kids to buy," said Professor Just.

Cornell will eventually make its findings public for all school districts to use, in an effort to get kids to select healthier items more often. Currently, a number of zero-cost tips for school lunchrooms have been published online, including:

Make vegetables cool for kids by giving them creative names!

Convenience is key! Place healthy items next to the cash register.

Students don’t have long for lunch! Provide healthy grab–and–go options in the lunchroom.

Light it up! Display foods in an appealing, well–lit way.

Use colorful posters and table tents to advertise.

Healthy breakfasts are just as important as lunch!

Vary vending machine options!

Gradually move to whole grains.

Make vegetables and fruit the "default" sides.

Prompt students at the cash register — ask if they would like a fruit or vegetable.

Stay synced by keeping online menus current.