Public Schools in NYC Get Salad Bars, Courtesy of Whole Foods Market

Only yesterday, US's Whole Foods Market, a company that takes great pride in its commercializing only natural and organic products, made it public news that it is to donate 57 salad bars to schools in New York City, in an attempt to encourage kids and adolescents to eat healthier.

According to preliminary reports, supplying these amounts of fruits, and vegetables to various school cafeterias will cost the company roughly $300,000 (about €240,000 / ₤189,000), but this investment is expected to yield major benefits in terms of fighting back the country's obesity epidemic.

New York City's Mayor, Mike Bloomberg, was also present when Whole Foods Market made this announcement, and commented on this donation as follows: “Giving every student access to healthy fruit and vegetables is the next step in countering the obesity epidemic and getting kids started on a healthy habit for life.”

Furthermore, “Kids love salad bars in schools – I keep hearing that they are often the first choice for lunch – and this donation from Whole Foods will help bring this delicious and healthy option to more kids.”

Food Policy Coordinator Kessler backs up his statements, explaining how, “We know that more students will adopt healthy behaviors when their school environments reinforce good choices – through school gardens, wellness councils, exercise programs, and of course, salad bars.”

The official website for Mayor Mike Bloomberg informs us that, by the year 2015, all of the schools found within the premises of New York City will provide their pupils with salad bars, and that a similar project aims at encouraging youth to drink water, rather than sodas, by providing them with water jets.

Apparently, the end goal is that of making sure that, by fighting back the obesity epidemic, future generations in the US will be healthy ones and therefore worthy contributors to the progress of society.

Just for the record, 1,000 salad bars are already up and running in New York City's public schools, and investigations carried out back in 2011 with respect to public health have shown that the kids living in this part of the US were indeed making progress in their battle against obesity.