SNA Show Preview: National Dairy Council Teams Up with the NFL for Nutrition and Physical Activity Program

By FoodChannel Editor | July 6, 2010 7:20 pm

The National Dairy Council is excited to promote its Fuel Up to Play 60 program at this year’s School Nutrition Association Annual National Conference in Dallas.

Fuel Up to Play 60 is a free, in-school initiative addressing childhood obesity. Linked to nutrient-poor, or “junk food” diets and not getting enough daily physical activity, childhood obesity has reached epidemic proportions in the U.S.

Fuel Up to Play 60 empowers youth, Grades 4 -10, to take an active role in making healthy eating and physical activity changes for themselves, their classmates and their school.

The program, provided by National Dairy CouncilÂ® (NDC) and the National Football League (NFL) in collaboration with the United States Department of Agriculture, included youth input to assure it was on-target to appeal directly to kids. The program’s design allows youth and schools to determine which tools and resources best help meet each school’s wellness goals and features easy enrollment and step-by-step guidance for adults and students. It’s structured so the entire school community can participate in order to create sustainable healthy behavior change.

â€˜Fuel Upâ€™ Rally on Monday with Tashard Choice of the NFL’s Dallas Cowboysâ€”and the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders

Running Back Tashard Choice will be on hand Monday, July 12, at the NDC booth (#1101), along with the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders for a rally to help promote Fuel Up and Play 60. The rally will begin in the morning, before the exhibits are open.

SNA Members play a crucial role in the fight against childhood obesity

Roberto Garza of the NFL’s Chicago Bears helps kids get involved in the program

The expertise and guidance of school nutrition professionals is vital to help engage and empower students to “fuel up” with the nutrient-rich foods they often lack – low-fat and fat-free milk and milk products, fruits, vegetables and whole grains – and “get up and play” for 60 minutes daily. The school environment is critical in teaching healthy habits because meals and snacks consumed at school provide one-third to 50 percent of a student’s daily nutritional needs.

School foodservice pros play an indispensible role of working with students and other adult stakeholders to understand and get involved in the nutrition program. For a free School Wellness Enrollment Kit, you can click here.

School Nutrition Association (SNA) Members can earn Continuing Education Units (CEU’s) for a variety of Fuel Up to Play 60 activities. You can click here for more information.

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The National Dairy Council is a sponsor of The Food Channel’s coverage of the School Nutrition Association Annual National Conference.