I am a chef and a food policy guy, but I come from a whole family of teachers. My sister is a special ed teacher in Chicago. My father just retired after 25 years teaching fifth grade. My aunt and uncle were professors. My cousins all teach. Everybody in my family, basically, teaches except for me. They taught me that the only way to get the right answers is to ask the right questions. So what are the right questions when it comes to improving the educational outcomes for our children? There's obviously many important questions, but I think the following is a good place to start: What do we think the connection is between a child's growing mind and their growing body? What can we expect our kids to learn if their diets are full of sugar and empty of nutrients? What can they possibly learn if their bodies are literally going hungry? And with all the resources that we are pouring into schools, we should stop and ask ourselves: Are we really setting our kids up for success?
Po zanimanju sam šef kuhinje i kreator pravila prehrane, no dolazim iz obitelji nastavnika. Moja sestra je nastavnik za djecu s poteškoćama u Chicagu. Moj otac je upravo otišao u mirovinu nakon 25 godina rada u osnovnoj školi. Moji teta i tetak su bili profesori. Svi moji rođaci nešto podučavaju. U biti, svatko u mojoj obitelji podučava, osim mene. Naučili su me da jedini način kako bih dobio prave odgovore, je postavljati prava pitanja. Pa koja su prava pitanja kada je riječ o poboljšanju rezultata u obrazovanju kod naše djece? Očito, postoje brojna važna pitanja, no, mislim da je dobro započeti od sljedećeg: Što mislimo koja je veza između mentalnog razvoja djeteta i njegovog fizičkog razvoja? Što možemo očekivati od naše djece da nauče, ako im je prehrana puna šećera i bez hranjive vrijednosti? Što uopće oni mogu naučiti ako njihova tijela doslovno gladuju? I uz sve resurse koje ulažemo u škole, trebali bismo zastati i upitati se: Pripremamo li zaista našu djecu za uspjeh?
Now, a few years ago, I was a judge on a cooking competition called "Chopped." Four chefs compete with mystery ingredients to see who can cook the best dishes. Except for this episode -- it was a very special one. Instead of four overzealous chefs trying to break into the limelight -- something that I would know nothing about -- (Laughter) these chefs were school chefs; you know, the women that you used to call "lunch ladies," but the ones I insist we call "school chefs." Now, these women -- God bless these women -- spend their day cooking for thousands of kids, breakfast and lunch, with only $2.68 per lunch, with only about a dollar of that actually going to the food. In this episode, the main-course mystery ingredient was quinoa. Now, I know it's been a long time since most of you have had a school lunch, and we've made a lot of progress on nutrition, but quinoa still is not a staple in most school cafeterias.
Prije nekoliko godina bio sam u žiriju kulinarskog natjecanja 'Chopped'. Četiri kuhara natječu se u kuhanju nepoznatim namirnicama kako bi se vidjelo tko može pripremiti najbolja jela. Izuzetak je ova, posebna epizoda. Umjesto četiri strastvena kuhara, koji se bore za središte pozornosti, nešto o čemu ne bih ništa znao -- (Smijeh) ovi su bili kuhari u školama; znate, žene koje ste obično zvali 'tete koje dijele užinu', no, ja inzistiram da ih zovemo školskim kuharicama. Te žene, neka ih bog blagoslovi... provode svoj dan kuhajući za tisuće djece, doručak i ručak, sa samo $2.68 (oko 18 kn) po ručku, od čega otprilike samo $1 (oko 7 kn) ide na samu hranu. U toj epizodi, nepoznata namirnica za pripremu glavnog jela bila je kvinoja. Znam da je prošlo mnogo vremena, od kada je većina vas ručala u školi, a mi smo mnogo napredovali po pitanju hranjivosti obroka, no, kvinoja još uvijek nije uključena u prehranu u većini školskih kantina.
(Laughter)
(Smijeh)
So this was a challenge. But the dish that I will never forget was cooked by a woman named Cheryl Barbara. Cheryl was the nutrition director at High School in the Community in Connecticut. She cooked this delicious pasta. It was amazing. It was a pappardelle with Italian sausage, kale, Parmesan cheese. It was delicious, like, restaurant-quality good, except -- she basically just threw the quinoa, pretty much uncooked, into the dish. It was a strange choice, and it was super crunchy. (Laughter) So I took on the TV accusatory judge thing that you're supposed to do, and I asked her why she did that.
I to je bio izazov. No, jelo koje nikada neću zaboraviti je skuhala jedna žena, koja se zove Cheryl Barbara. Cheryl je bila voditelj prehrane u srednjoj školi zajednice u državi Connecticut. Pripremila je izvrsno jelo od tjestenine. Bilo je izvanredno. Bile su to pappardelle s talijanskom kobasicom, keljom i parmezanom. Bilo je vrlo ukusno, na nivou kvalitete za restorane, osim... što je ubacila kvinoju, gotovo nekuhanu, u jelo. Bio je to neobičan izbor, i bilo je super hrskavo. (Smijeh) I tako sam preuzeo riječ u žiriju, što se od tebe očekuje i pitao je zašto je to učinila.
Cheryl responded, "Well, first, I don't know what quinoa is." (Laughter) "But I do know that it's a Monday, and that in my school, at High School in the Community, I always cook pasta."
Cheryl je odgovorila: 'Pa, prvo, ne znam što je kvinoja.' (Smijeh) 'Ali znam da je ponedjeljak, a tada u mojoj školi, u srednoj školi u mojoj zajednici, uvijek pripremam jelo od tjestenine.
See, Cheryl explained that for many of her kids, there were no meals on the weekends. No meals on Saturday. No meals on Sunday, either. So she cooked pasta because she wanted to make sure she cooked something she knew her children would eat. Something that would stick to their ribs, she said. Something that would fill them up. Cheryl talked about how, by the time Monday came, her kids' hunger pangs were so intense that they couldn't even begin to think about learning. Food was the only thing on their mind. The only thing. And unfortunately, the stats -- they tell the same story.
Vidite, Cheryl je objasnila da za mnoge od njezine djece, nije bilo obroka vikendom. NIje bilo obroka subotom. NIje bilo obroka ni nedjeljom. Zato je pripremila tjesteninu, jer je htjela biti sigurna kako je skuhala nešto, za što je znala da će njezina djeca jesti. Nešto od čega će biti siti, rekla je. Nešto što će im napuniti želudac. Cheryl je pričala, kada bi došao ponedjeljak, djeca bi imala toliko jaku bol od gladi, da ne bi čak ni mogli početi razmišljati o učenju. Jedino o čemu su mislili, bila je hrana. Jedina stvar. I nažalost, statistika pokazuje isto.
So, let's put this into the context of a child.
Dakle, stavimo ovo u kontekst djeteta.
And we're going to focus on the most important meal of the day, breakfast. Meet Allison. She's 12 years old, she's smart as a whip and she wants to be a physicist when she grows up. If Allison goes to a school that serves a nutritious breakfast to all of their kids, here's what's going to follow. Her chances of getting a nutritious meal, one with fruit and milk, one lower in sugar and salt, dramatically increase. Allison will have a lower rate of obesity than the average kid. She'll have to visit the nurse less. She'll have lower levels of anxiety and depression. She'll have better behavior. She'll have better attendance, and she'll show up on time more often. Why? Well, because there's a good meal waiting for her at school. Overall, Allison is in much better health than the average school kid.
I usredotočit ćemo se na najvažniji obrok u danu, doručak. Upoznajte Allison. Ima 12 godina, strašno je pametna i želi postati fizičarka kada odraste. Ako Allison pohađa školu koja poslužuje hranjivi doručak svim svojim učenicima, dogodit će se sljedeće. Njezine šanse, dobijanjem hranjivog obroka, jedan koji uključuje voće i mlijeko te jedan s manje šećera i soli, dramatično rastu. Allison će imati nižu stopu pretilosti nego prosječno dijete. Rjeđe će morati ići liječniku, imat će niže razine tjeskobe i depresije, bolje će se ponašati, više će pohađati nastavu i češće će dolaziti na vrijeme. Zašto? Zato što je u školi čeka ukusan obrok. Iznad svega, Allison je mnogo zdravija nego prosječan školarac.
So what about that kid who doesn't have a nutritious breakfast waiting for him? Well, meet Tommy. He's also 12. He's a wonderful kid. He wants to be a doctor. By the time Tommy is in kindergarten, he's already underperforming in math. By the time he's in third grade, he's got lower math and reading scores. By the time he's 11, it's more likely that Tommy will have to have repeated a grade. Research shows that kids who do not have consistent nourishment, particularly at breakfast, have poor cognitive function overall.
A što onda s djetetom, koje nema hranjiv doručak koji će ga dočekati? Pa, pogledajte Tommyja. I on ima 12 godina. Predivno je dijete. Želi postati liječnik. Do trenutka kada je Tommy u vrtiću, već ima nešto slabije rezultate iz matematike. Do trenutka kada je u trećem razredu, ima slabije ocjene iz matematike i čitanja. Do vremena kada navrši 11 godina, veća je vjerojatnost da će Tommy morati ponavljati razred. Istraživanja pokazuju da djeca koja nemaju redovitu prehranu, naročito doručak, imaju, iznad svega, slabe kognitivne funkcije.
So how widespread is this problem? Well, unfortunately, it's pervasive. Let me give you two stats that seem like they're on opposite ends of the issue, but are actually two sides of the same coin. On the one hand, one in six Americans are food insecure, including 16 million children -- almost 20 percent -- are food insecure. In this city alone, in New York City, 474,000 kids under the age of 18 face hunger every year. It's crazy. On the other hand, diet and nutrition is the number one cause of preventable death and disease in this country, by far. And fully a third of the kids that we've been talking about tonight are on track to have diabetes in their lifetime. Now, what's hard to put together but is true is that, many times, these are the same children. So they fill up on the unhealthy and cheap calories that surround them in their communities and that their families can afford. But then by the end of the month, food stamps run out or hours get cut at work, and they don't have the money to cover the basic cost of food.
Koliko je, stoga, raširen ovaj problem? Nažalost, on prožima sve. Dat ću vam dva podatka, za koje se čini da su na suprotnim krajevima ovog problema, ali su, zapravo, dvije strane istog novčića. S jedne strane, jedan od šest Amerikanaca pati od nedostatka hrane, uključujući 16 milijuna djece, što je gotovo 20% ljudi koji nemaju dovoljno hrane. Samo u ovom gradu, u New York-u, 474.000 djece ispod dobi od 18 godina suočava se s glađu svake godine. To je suludo. S druge strane, prehrana je glavni uzročnik moguće smrti i bolesti u ovoj zemlji, dosad. I gotovo trećina djece o kojoj smo govorili večeras, na putu je da oboli od dijabetesa tijekom svog života. Ono što je teško shvatiti, ali je istina, je da su često to ista djeca. Dakle, zasite se unosom nezdravih i praznih kalorija, kojima su okruženi u svojoj zajednici i koje im roditelji jedino mogu priuštiti. No tada, do kraja mjeseca, potroše se bonovi za hranu, ili se skrati broj radnih sati na poslu i oni ostaju bez novca za pokrivanje osnovnih troškova za hranu.
But we should be able to solve this problem, right? We know what the answers are. As part of my work at the White House, we instituted a program that for all schools that had 40 percent more low-income kids, we could serve breakfast and lunch to every kid in that school. For free.
No, trebali bismo moći ovo riješiti, zar ne? Znamo odgovore. Dok sam radio u Bijeloj kući, osnovali smo program gdje smo za sve škole, koje su imale 40% više djece iz obitelji s niskim prihodima, mogli poslužiti doručak i ručak svakom djetetu u toj školi. Besplatno.
This program has been incredibly successful, because it helped us overcome a very difficult barrier when it came to getting kids a nutritious breakfast. And that was the barrier of stigma. See, schools serve breakfast before school, and it was only available for the poor kids. So everybody knew who was poor and who needed government help. Now, all kids, no matter how much or how little their parents make, have a lot of pride. So what happened? Well, the schools that have implemented this program saw an increase in math and reading scores by 17.5 percent. 17.5 percent. And research shows that when kids have a consistent, nutritious breakfast, their chances of graduating increase by 20 percent. 20 percent. When we give our kids the nourishment they need, we give them the chance to thrive, both in the classroom and beyond.
Program je bio nevjerojatno uspješan, jer nam je pomogao svladati jednu vrlo tešku prepreku, kada se radilo o davanju hranjivog doručka toj djeci. A ta prepreka je bila stigma. Vidite, škole poslužuju doručak prije nastave, i on je bio dostupan samo siromašnoj djeci. Tako su svi znali tko je siromašan i tko je trebao državnu pomoć. A sva djeca, bez obzira koliko njihovi roditelji zarađuju, imaju velik ponos. I što se dogodilo? Škole koje su primijenile ovaj program, uočile su porast ocjena u matematici i čitanju za 17,5%. 17,5%. A istraživanje pokazuje, da kada djeca imaju redovit i hranjiv doručak, njihove šanse za završetak školovanja rastu za 20%. 20%. Kada djeci damo potrebnu ishranu, dajemo im šansu da napreduju, u učionici, ali i dalje.
Now, you don't have to trust me on this, but you should talk to Donna Martin. I love Donna Martin. Donna Martin is the school nutrition director at Burke County in Waynesboro, Georgia. Burke County is one of the poorest districts in the fifth-poorest state in the country, and about 100 percent of Donna's students live at or below the poverty line. A few years ago, Donna decided to get out ahead of the new standards that were coming, and overhaul her nutrition standards. She improved and added fruit and vegetables and whole grains. She served breakfast in the classroom to all of her kids. And she implemented a dinner program. Why? Well, many of her kids didn't have dinner when they went home.
Ne morate mi vjerovati u vezi ovoga, ali biste trebali pričati s Donnom Martin. Jako volim Donnu Martin. Donna Martin je direktorica školske prehrane u okrugu Burke, u Waynesboro-u, državi Georgia. Okrug Burke jedno je od najsiromašnijih područja pete najsiromašnije države u zemlji i oko 100% Donninih učenika živi u, ili ispod granice siromaštva. Prije nekoliko godina, Donna je odlučila istaknuti se kroz nove standarde koji su dolazili te popraviti prehrambene standarde u školi. Poboljšala ih je i dodala voće, povrće i cjelovite žitarice. Posluživala je doručak u učionicama svim svojim učenicima. A provela je i program davanja večere. Zašto? Pa... mnogo njezinih učenika nije imalo večeru kada bi došli kući.
So how did they respond? Well, the kids loved the food. They loved the better nutrition, and they loved not being hungry. But Donna's biggest supporter came from an unexpected place. His name from Eric Parker, and he was the head football coach for the Burke County Bears. Now, Coach Parker had coached mediocre teams for years. The Bears often ended in the middle of the pack -- a big disappointment in one of the most passionate football states in the Union. But the year Donna changed the menus, the Bears not only won their division, they went on to win the state championship, beating the Peach County Trojans 28-14.
I kako su oni reagirali? Djeca su hranu obožavala. Jako im se svidjela bolja prehrana, i to što nisu bili gladni. No, najveća podrška Donni došla je s neočekivane strane. Zvao se Eric Parker i bio je glavni nogometni trener za klub Bears okruga Burke. Trener Parker godinama je trenirao osrednje timove, Bears-i su često završavali sa slabim rezultatom, veliko razočaranje za državu koja je među najvećim ljubiteljima nogometa u cijeloj zemlji. No, one godine kada je Donna izmijenila jelovnik, Bears-i ne samo da su pobijedili u svojoj skupini, već su krenuli u osvajanje državnog prvenstva, pobjedivši klub Trojans okruga Peach 28:14.
(Laughter)
(Smijeh)
And Coach Parker, he credited that championship to Donna Martin.
A trener Parker, zaslugu za osvajanje prvenstva pripisao je Donni Martin.
When we give our kids the basic nourishment, they're going to thrive. And it's not just up to the Cheryl Barbaras and the Donna Martins of the world. It's on all of us. And feeding our kids the basic nutrition is just the starting point. What I've laid out is really a model for so many of the most pressing issues that we face. If we focus on the simple goal of properly nourishing ourselves, we could see a world that is more stable and secure; we could dramatically improve our economic productivity; we could transform our health care and we could go a long way in ensuring that the Earth can provide for generations to come. Food is that place where our collective efforts can have the greatest impact.
Kada djeci osiguramo osnovnu prehranu, oni će napredovati. I to nije samo zbog svih osoba poput Cheryl Barbara, niti svih Donna Martin na ovom svijetu. To je zbog svih nas. I osigurati djeci osnovnu prehranu samo je početak točka. Ono što sam postavio zapravo je model za mnoga od najvažnijih pitanja s kojima se suočavamo. Ako se posvetimo jednostavnom cilju pravilne ishrane nas samih, mogli bismo vidjeti stabilniji i sigurniji svijet, mogli bismo značajno poboljšati našu ekonomsku produktivnost, mogli bismo promijeniti našu zdravstvenu skrb i mogli bismo uspjeti osigurati da naš planet može opskrbljivati buduće generacije. Hrana je ono, gdje naši zajednički napori mogu imati najviše utjecaja.
So we have to ask ourselves: What is the right question? What would happen if we fed ourselves more nutritious, more sustainably grown food? What would be the impact? Cheryl Barbara, Donna Martin, Coach Parker and the Burke County Bears -- I think they know the answer.
Stoga se moramo upitati: Koje je pravo pitanje? Što bi se dogodilo da smo se hranili zdravije, hranom iz održivog uzgoja? Kako bi to utjecalo na nas? Cheryl Barbara, Donna Martin, trener Parker i Bearsi iz okruga Burke mislim da znaju odgovor.
Thank you guys so very much.
Veliko vam hvala.
(Applause)
(Pljesak)