“Why can’t I just have pasta?” I ask the stubborn cafeteria worker, after spending several minutes arguing that I want only the pasta and not the accompanying meat. While she mutters something back to me about the dietary regulations, I suspiciously eye the boy next to me, who picks up a piece of cheese pizza compromising of saturated fats and refined carbs and walks out unbothered. I leave empty handed, unwilling to take meat I know I will just throw out. As I sit through the rest of the school day hungry, I consider the stupidity of a protein requirement that ultimately left me with no meal, instead of its intention of providing me with a balanced lunch.
Though I was originally excited for our new cafeteria, the imposed rule that some dishes come with a mandatory side of meat make it difficult to enjoy the variety of options.
I’m vegetarian, so I don’t eat meat ever, but even my non-vegetarian friends occasionally make the complaint that they just don’t want the meat. And while the cafeteria advertises other vegetarian options, they often run out, and it doesn’t make sense to deny kids certain available foods when it is so easy to just offer meat separately.
Rory McCarthy, who is in charge of food service for the district, wrote in an email regarding my complaints that to comply with the USDA meal requirements, “A complete meal typically must contain a protein (meat or meat alternate), a grain, a fruit, a vegetable, and milk.” He added that the pesto pasta alone has no protein, and that is why they must serve it with chicken.
While upon sight this makes sense, a closer look at what is served with or without meat in the cafeteria makes these supposed USDA meal regulations seem arbitrary. A grilled cheese and fries is considered more balanced than a serving of pesto pasta with tomatoes because the grilled cheese contains some sort of protein.
However, while the American cheese found in the grilled cheese may have protein, it’s still not necessarily healthy. According to MedicineNet, American cheese has excessive sodium and fat and should not be eaten on a daily basis (say, for lunch every day). Eating protein-less pesto pasta is arguably a more nutritious choice for a meal eaten repeatedly. Besides, on top of this, eating the pasta on its own is better than eating nothing at all, which I would choose over taking the meat and throwing it out.
The school has no means of seeing if kids actually eat what is given to them, and it logically makes sense not to give kids food that they know they won’t eat. It’s great to offer the option of a more balanced meal, but forcing kids to take the food does not actually force them to eat it, and thus the logic of providing a balanced meal is moot.
Ultimately, the only thing the cafeteria is achieving by refusing pasta to those who won’t take the chicken is the aggravation of students and unnecessary food waste. The idea of providing a balanced meal is valid, but its execution is not. When rules don’t work out the way they are intended, we should change them. Let me get my pasta in peace.