First Lady Michelle Obama’s “Let’s Move!” initiative may be designed to tackle childhood obesity, but students at the University of New Hampshire are getting their own lesson in nutrition when they pick up a plate in the dining hall.
The university unveiled its new Wildcat Plates, named for the school’s mascot, to encourage students enjoying a meal at the dining hall to eat healthy, offering dietary guidelines right at their fingertips — literally. Each melamine plate serves as a nutritional roadmap to the Department of Agriculture’s symbol of healthy eating, USA Today reported.
“They’re moving from a place where sometimes their dining experiences at home were kind of dictated by their parents, and now they have a lot of freedom, which is great in some ways, but this becomes one of the helpful reminders of how to eat well,” Jo Porter, deputy director of the New Hampshire Institute for Health Policy and Practice, told USA Today. “Some people will use them to get a sense of what a healthy plate looks like, and then ingrain that in their everyday living and not need that plate every single time.”
Each piece of dishware is divided into four sections: fruits, whole grains, vegetables and lean protein, and boasts the university’s logo in the middle with the words “healthy UNH.” Though the plates slightly differ from those promoted by the USDA — which abandoned the food pyramid for the image of a plate — both tackle the goal of healthy eating. The Department of Agriculture’s plate suggests Americans eat fruits, vegetables, grains and proteins, instead.
UNH circulates 1,300 of the nutrition-based plates through its three dining halls, mixing them in with the school’s standard ceramic plates. The university typically serves approximately 12,000 meals a day, and though the school was hoping the plates would make students think before they eat, their initiative is hardly receiving rave reviews.
According to USA Today, freshman Mike Carbone substituted the recommended fruits and vegetables for onion rings and grilled chicken, with some chicken nuggets mixed in.
“It’s not a very nutritious lunch, but I’m drinking water,” he told the news organization.
Junior Peter Heislein, though, said the plates made him think about eating healthier. He noted that though the dishware has made him choose an apple as opposed to french fries, the plates have not had too much of an impact on his diet. Instead, he’s focused more on what the plates do for his hands than his stomach.
“I wish it was better than this, but I like them because they’re not searing hot like the ceramic plates,” Heislein said. “It does make [me] a little [health] conscious, but not a ton.”
Since President Obama took office, many schools have launched efforts to encourage healthy eating, namely through First Lady Michelle Obama’s “Let’s Move!” initiative. The Department of Agriculture launched its “My Plate on Campus” cause earlier this year to encourage colleges and their students to focus on healthy eating.
Though the Wildcat plate is not issued specifically by the USDA, UNH copyrighted its design and hopes to sell it to other high schools and colleges as a way to promote healthy eating.
