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Kindle Farm, MVU, SATEC bring home accolades at Junior Iron Chef competition

Teams of pint-sized chefs were brimming with anticipation as they hurriedly assembled gas burners and unpacked fresh ingredients last Saturday. Competitors barked commands at each other over the excited chattering of a growing crowd of spectators. One by one, they started raising green cards into the air, signifying they were ready to begin.

On March 18, middle and high school chefs from around the state convened at the Champlain Valley Exposition to prove their chops at the 10th annual Junior Iron Chef VT Competition. The event was organized by Vermont FEED and sponsored by a number of local organizations.

The Abbey Group sponsored 11 teams, three of which walked away with awards.

Two high school teams took home the Crowd Pleaser award, for which participants received $1,000 scholarships for the New England Culinary Institute and a local-food-related gift package made up of sponsor products.

The Kindle Farmers from Kindle Farm School won the morning heat for their Tofu Lo Mein. The team comprised Ethan Anderson, John Daily, Austin Honig, Liam Mulholland, and Maxwell Weeks. Their coach was Patrick Carroll.

The Thunderchefs from Missisquoi Valley Union High School wowed the judges in the afternoon heat with their take on Quinoa Spicy Stuffed Peppers. Team members included Julia Hieden, Brittany Merchant, Chelsea Rocheleau, Leah Smail, and Alyssa Vincent. Their coaches were Alisa Aylward and Ashley Bowen.

In the middle school division, one Abbey Group team took its place at the top of the pack. St. Albans Town Education Center’s Pawtastic Chefs nabbed the Mise En Place award for exemplary teamwork, order, and professionalism. They made Roasted Beet Hummus Sandwiches. They were awarded a local-food-related gift package. The winning team comprised Maya Belanger, Isabelle Burleson, Will Dumont, and Connor Powell. Team coach was Jane Berry.

Other Abbey Group schools that sent teams to the competition include: Fairfield Center School, Mount Anthony Union Middle School, North Country Union Junior High School, and Leland & Gray Union Middle School.

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Barre Town School scores Fuel Up to Play money

BARRE TOWN, Vt. — The New England Dairy and Food Council, in conjunction with the National Football League, presented Barre Town School with a check for $3,473 as part of the Fuel Up to Play 60 program.

Jill Hussels — a nutrition specialist with the council — and Bonnie Hall — representing Fairmont Farm in East Montpelier, Vermont. — were at the school Jan. 27 to hand over the check.

Fuel Up to Play 60 promotes in-school nutrition and physical activity at schools across the country by encouraging students to eat nutrient-rich food and exercise at least 60 minutes per day.

Much of the money will be used to replace Barre Town’s commercial blender, which is used to make healthy yogurt smoothies for the students; to buy a new orange slicer; and to host a smoothie taste test and competition, which has yet to be scheduled.

The current blender, which was also bought with Fuel Up to Play money, has been popular with the students, said Bob Hildebrand — the Abbey Group’s Central Vermont food service director. In the three years the school has had it, the blender has had a lot of use and needs to be replaced.

Rear, from left: Bob Hildebrand, the Abbey Group’s Central Vermont food service director; Scott Griggs, Barre Town School grade 5-8 principal; Jill Hussels, nutrition specialist with the New England Dairy and Food Council; Bonnie Hall, representing Fairmont Farm in East Montpelier, Vt.; and Ella Purchase. Front, from left: P.J. LaPerle, Barre Town School SAP counselor; and Jameson Solomon and Nathan Romeo, student ambassadors.
Rear, from left: Bob Hildebrand, the Abbey Group’s Central Vermont food service director; Scott Griggs, Barre Town School grade 5-8 principal; Jill Hussels, nutrition specialist with the New England Dairy and Food Council; Bonnie Hall, representing Fairmont Farm in East Montpelier, Vt.; and Ella Purchase.
Front, from left: P.J. LaPerle, Barre Town School SAP counselor; and Jameson Solomon and Nathan Romeo, student ambassadors.

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Teaming up with Winooski Farmer’s Market!

The Abbey Group will be serving free Sunday summer meals on July 10th, July 17th, July 24th and July 31st at the Winooski Farmer’s Market. This is a groundbreaking initiative that has been made possible through the collaboration between NOFA Vermont, the Vermont Community Foundation, the Winooski School District and City of Winooski.

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Colebrook Academy Recognized as Top Achiever for School Breakfast Challenge

Colebrook Academy Recognized as Top Achiever for School Breakfast Challenge

 Colebrook Academy was recently recognized as a top achieving small high school of the fourth quarter, by New Hampshire Kids Count, increasing school breakfast participation among all students by 713.3% and among free and reduced price students by 409.9% between October 2013 and October 2015.

For the last two years, the New Hampshire Department of Education has been running a promotion in all public schools in an attempt to increase breakfast participation. The goal is to get schools to increase their participation by 25%, with recognition going to each school that reaches the goal.

This achievement has been possible due to the strong effort and determination of The Abbey Food Service Director Steve Learned and Colebrook Academy Principal Mark Fiorentino, who have been working closely with Site Supervisor Steven Davis and assistant Debra Thompson to make the increase possible.

“We tried many new menu items to increase breakfast sales” says Steve Learned.  “But after talking with the students, it became apparent that many of them just aren’t ready to eat breakfast at 7:30 in the morning.  Offering breakfast at a later time was the key.”

Principal Mark Fiorentino says  “The idea of a Grab-N-Go breakfast seemed logical from the start, but it affects daily classrooms and teachers. We are fortunate to have such a flexible staff, that is willing to go above and beyond for our students. This program has worked well, but there has been growing pains over the past year.  Several times I have questioned its value and yet stayed the course through innovative inventions. I’m glad we did.”

The Abbey Group is an award winning food service management company whose mission is to feed children nutritious and delicious meals and build meaningful relationships with the communities that we serve. We succeed in our efforts by maximizing student participation through innovative merchandising, high quality staff and menus that feature on trend items as well as home-style and traditional favorites.

New Hampshire Kids Count is dedicated to improving the lives of all children by advocating for public initiatives that make a real difference.  As the only independent multi-issue child advocacy organization in NH, we use comprehensive data to bring people together, raise questions, seek answers and make smart, long lasting changes for NH children. NH Kids Count and its coalition, NH Hunger Solutions, developed the New Hampshire Roadmap to End Childhood Hunger (PDF), a statewide plan to tackle the root causes of childhood hunger. Expanding the use of school breakfast is one step toward creating a New Hampshire where every child has three nutritious meals a day.

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