>> The ADEMA University School today inaugurated the 4th International Nutrition Week with a focus on children’s nutrition and sustainable school cafeterias.
>>They suggest the active role of dietitians-nutritionists in supervising school menus to ensure they are healthy, sustainable, and inclusive, and to combat childhood obesity.
From today until next Friday, April 11, the ADEMA University School is hosting the 4th International Nutrition Week in Palma, a well-established event for professionals, researchers, and students in the fields of nutrition, dietetics, and food.
For five days, experts from the public and private sectors will discuss the sector’s main challenges, with a program that includes lectures, roundtable discussions, healthy and sustainable cooking workshops, and the presentation of scientific research and posters.
This year’s edition will focus on children’s nutrition and school cafeterias, a particularly important topic where the challenge of ensuring universal access to healthy, sustainable, and socially just meals persists.
As explained by Dr. Alicia Julibert, Head of Studies for the Degree in Human Nutrition and Dietetics, during the inauguration, “The World Health Organization indicates that the school environment is a key space for acquiring knowledge, attitudes, and practices related to health and nutrition. In the Balearic Islands, according to the report “Diagnòstic dels menjadors escolars,” 20% of students enrolled in the second cycle of Early Childhood and Primary Education in public schools use the school cafeteria service. But why is the school cafeteria important? Because it plays a key role in teaching healthy eating habits from an early age.”
The ALADINO 2023 study, led by the Spanish Agency for Food Safety and Nutrition (AESAN), highlights the magnitude of the problem: more than a third of children between 6 and 9 years old (36.1%) are overweight or obese. Furthermore, only 45.3% eat fruit daily, and only 23.8% include vegetables in their daily diet.
Given these data, Dr. Alicia Julibert, Head of Studies for the Bachelor’s Degree in Human Nutrition, emphasized “the urgent need to intervene in all possible areas, and the school environment is one of the most strategic. In this context, the role of the dietitian-nutritionist is essential. Their work not only involves designing menus that are balanced, attractive, and appropriate for the dietary and nutritional recommendations for children, but also actively participating in promoting healthy lifestyles.”
For the president of the World Conference of Dietitians-Nutritionists and the president of the scientific committee of this fourth edition, Dr. Giuseppe Russolillo, “in our Autonomous Community, this work must be carried out in accordance with the BOIB guidelines for the promotion of the Mediterranean diet in educational and healthcare centers in the Balearic Islands (2019). Furthermore, current regulations establish that school menus must be supervised by a dietitian-nutritionist, with the intention of guaranteeing their nutritional quality and suitability to children’s needs based on the most up-to-date scientific evidence.”
During this session, expert Miguel Ángel Guerrero presents the work of the Alimentant el Futur Network, a pioneering initiative created in 2022 to promote healthy and sustainable school cafeterias in the Balearic Islands. This network promotes a comprehensive approach, involving schools, families, healthcare professionals, catering companies, and local producers.
“The goal is for all school cafeterias to incorporate health, education, sustainability, and social justice criteria, becoming drivers of change. In this process, the role and active participation of the dietitian-nutritionist, families, children, and the school, especially in the cafeteria committees, are key to driving improvements from within the schools themselves,” argued Miguel Ángel Guerrero.
Furthermore, the cafeteria has a fundamental social and educational function. It is a space for socializing and learning, where children not only eat but also internalize values, social norms, and ways of relating to their environment and food.
Challenges in the acceptance of sustainable menus
During the conferences, the challenge of introducing plant-based proteins into school menus is also addressed, as explained by dietitian-nutritionist Ana Espiño. Although legumes are an accepted and affordable option, there is still reluctance when menus reduce or eliminate animal protein, despite its nutritional value.
The main reason, to a large extent, is the lack of awareness about the versatility of legumes and the lack of training in healthy eating, which leads to distrust in the quality of menus and contributes to unsustainable eating habits.
An event that connects science, health and social commitment
For the organizing committee, the 4th International Nutrition Week is an opportunity to reflect on the future of nutrition, focusing on childhood and how school environments can be key to addressing nutrition-related public health problems.
With this event, ADEMA reinforces its commitment to training professionals capable of working to generate this change, promoting healthier and more sustainable nutrition.