About Kidssentials
Established in 1996, Kidssentials addresses a need within school communities to provide a healthy alternative to the traditional ‘special lunches’ usually served in schools. Our programs are built on the premise that having hot nutritious meals in schools should not be difficult or intrusive.
‘Nutritious Delicious Day®’, our signature program, offers the foods children recognize and want to eat, ensuring excellent nutritional content and satisfying portion sizes. Recognizing the diversity within schools, cultures and lifestyles, we are able to customize each program to meet and exceed the wishes of the schools we service.
“We have been very happy with the nutritious choices and wonderful portion sizes Kidssentials has provided us with. The food is never fried, is always served hot and there is enough food to fill the child without having them ‘stuff’ themselves. Quality, nutritious food, served hot and on time, has kept us returning to Kidssentials.”
Halton Public School Fundraising Chair
Our Commitment
We firmly believe that healthy eating is a requirement for meeting children’s needs for growth, development and activity; That healthy eating contributes to a child’s sense of well being, and also helps them to concentrate and perform to their maximum potential.
It is our desire to help parents, teachers and caregivers provide children with the fuel they need to complete their day fully and effectively.
Nutrition
One of the keys to feeding children is giving them what they want while making it healthy. It’s pretty simple.
You hear about Nutrition everywhere—what it’s doing or rather what the lack of it is doing to our kids. The number of obese children is on the rise and what they eat affects their performance and long-term health. Health care professionals are quick to cite current diet patterns and the fast food industry with the decline of our children’s health.
“Not all nuggets are created equal”
Chicken nuggets (as an example) are one of those foods that take a big hit and have a bad reputation. When you think of the words ‘chicken nuggets’, you instantly think of those greasy, little deep-fried things you get at the drive-thru window. Mention the words ‘chicken nuggets’ to children and ask if they would like some and instantly a whole bunch of little hands shoot straight into the air.
Knowing that nuggets are what the children want, this is what we do:
We use 100% white chicken breast meat covered in whole wheat crumbs, bake them (not deep fry) to a golden brown and voila! The result: High protein, low fat, fibre rich nuggets the children recognize, want and WILL eat. No wasted food, no wasted money, just a full tummy!
Working within the guidelines of the Canada Food Guide and Bill 8—“Healthy Foods for Healthy Schools Act”, it is not hard to come up with a menu full of the kinds of foods kids want to eat and keep them healthy.
Kidssentials Staff
Serving lunches at a school takes special people. Many of our staff are parents themselves who may have volunteered in one of our schools. Some are bus drivers, others are crossing guards. All have experience dealing with children and have found that a part-time job at Kidssentials fits well in their lives.
We are very proud to say that the staff working within Kidssentials all take great pride in their work. It is important to them that children be well fed and taken care of. They find it rewarding and enjoyable, and happy people make happy employees. For the safety of all of the children and in accordance with the law, up-to-date police record checks are obtained for all our staff.
Words that have been used to describe our staff include: caring, accommodating, easy to deal with, flexible, professional, courteous, well organized, prompt, efficient and respectful.
“The most important aspects of your programme is the very warm, and personal service your staff provides. I have observed your staff in their interactions with our students, and it is heart-warming to see how much they care about the children. I have watched your staff deal with various situations which have arisen in which students find themselves without a lunch, and on every occasion the students’ needs have been met with reassurance—and a smile. This aspect of the service you and your staff provide is both immeasurable and invaluable to me as Principal of the school.”
Mississauga Private School Principal
Food Safety Comes First
There are many elements to consider with the safe preparation and delivery of food to students in schools.
Temperature
Many food-borne illnesses are developed when food is not maintained at a safe temperature. Cold foods must be kept cold and hot foods hot! Kidssentials transports its foods in containers specially designed to maintain safe temperatures, in compliance with the Health Board regulations.
Kidssentials’ Catering Kitchens
Our large peanut/nut free commercial kitchens are clean and regularly inspected and approved by the local Health Departments.
Kidssentials’ years of experience and well- trained staff have developed and implemented stringent procedures and processes that ensure that your child’s food is prepared safely maintaining the highest quality and nutrition.
Quality and Texture
Using fresh, quality ingredients, Kidssentials meals are prepared fresh daily, utilizing the healthiest cooking methods in preparing the food.
Kidssentials serves food freshly assembled, on-site minutes before lunchtime. These processes ensure that the meals are assembled and distributed, efficiently preserving the quality and texture.
Serving ‘the Kidssentials way’, our food is fresh, never mushy, or stuck to the bun. Kidssentials’ lunches are piping hot with the texture, taste and quality intact.
“We have made a point of becoming familiar with the product that is served to our children and what stands out is the aromas that fill our hallways on hot lunch days smell like home cooking - testament to the freshness of foods, quality of incredients and attention to detail that this company takes to ensure that hot foods arrive hot and cold foods cold.”
Mississauga Publlic School Princiipal