Crunch and Sip

Crunch 'n' Sip©

Crunch 'n' Sip is an organised time throughout the school day where kids stop what they are doing in class  to have a piece of fruit.

One of the reasons that the Crunch 'n' Sip program was introduced to school aged children was  to try and stop the growing effects of obesity in young children.

Gwynneville Public School  started this program about 7 years  couple of years ago and we have noticed significant changes in the children's healthy eating habits.

When the school canteen was taken over privately   they got on board with the Crunch and Sip Program and  now provide  fruit cups for crunch 'n' sip. These have been a great succes and our fuit ordes continue to increase.

Experts say that kids should have three serves of fruit and five serves of vegetables a day. For parents this can be  a struggle and this is  why,The Sydney Markets have brought in  a new fresh food program called "fresh food for kids". This program has promoted the canteen with almost double the amount of fruit they sell each day. From selling one tray -  two trays, the best part about this is that they are in Bio Cup. Bio Cups are carboneutural and biodegradable. This means they can be reused and they break down easily too. By using this method, we are reducing the amount of waste going into landfill dumps.

WE asked the canteen Managers the following Questions

How much fruit do you think you would sell in a day?

- One - two trays of fruit cups and the minimum of apples we would sell in a week would be 12kg.

What is the difference between selling healthy fruit and unhealthy food?

- More people are buying the fruit rather than ice-blocks and cookies.

Do you prepare more fruit than unhealthy food or vice versa?

- Forty serves of fruit and two trays of fruit a day, so more fruit than unhealthy food.

Who is your  fruit and vegetable supplier?

- Leisure Coast Fruit and Deli. Every week they deliver our school's fruit and goods.

At our school the fresh food kids promotion has been a huge success, and the canteen managers are now thinking of running their own program, to encourage kids to continue to eat fruit and veggies and to try something new.With the Sydney Markets' help, their profits went rocketing up.

At Gwynneville Public School we are well on the way to promting healthy eating and reducing the obesity problem in young children.