Alex DiNovo: We Can Give Schoolchildren a Better Life

When I was 8 years old, my grandmother’s pasta and meatballs was my favorite meal. I can still remember the smell of tomato sauce simmering on the stove and the sound of her knife tapping against the cutting board. Dinner at Grandma DiNovo’s house wasn’t just about food — it was about love, family, and connection. Everyone cleared their schedule to be there, because you could taste the care she poured into every dish.

That early experience taught me something I’ve carried into my career: Feeding people is more than meeting a physical need. It’s an act of service, an expression of care, and a statement about what we value. If this is true in our homes, it should be even more true in our schools. After all, the meals we serve to children every day send powerful messages about their worth, their health and their future.

NOURISHING BOTH BODY AND SOUL

For too long, school meals have been reduced to a simple equation of calories and cost. But food is never just fuel. It is culture, community and identity. When we serve children highly processed, low-quality meals, the message is clear: convenience outweighs care. Over time, that message shapes how kids see themselves and the world.

The good news is that we have the chance to change this narrative. By prioritizing fresh fruits and vegetables in school meals, we can nourish not just bodies, but minds, communities and futures. Fresh produce carries a simple but profound message: You matter, your health matters, and we believe in your potential.

We don’t need more studies to tell us that fruits and vegetables are essential to lifelong health. They reduce the risk of chronic disease, support healthy brain development, and lay the foundation for better learning outcomes. Yet too many children still go through their school day without consistent access to them.

At a time when one in six children struggles with obesity, and diet-related illnesses are straining our healthcare system, investing in school produce programs is not optional. It is the most cost-effective public health intervention we have. A healthier child today means a healthier adult tomorrow — one less likely to face preventable disease and one more likely to contribute fully to society.

Selling produce to schools isn’t just about a single meal; it’s about shaping a lifetime of habits. When a child experiences fresh fruit in school, three things happen. First, they receive immediate nourishment. Second, they influence their family’s choices, bringing home new preferences, encouraging parents and siblings to try what they’ve enjoyed at school. Third, they build positive associations that increase the chance they’ll become lifelong produce consumers, increasing per capita consumption over time.

Selling produce to schools isn’t just about a single meal; it’s about shaping a lifetime of habits.

This is why every dollar spent on fresh produce in schools has a compounding return. It pays off in improved health outcomes, stronger communities, and even future economic benefits as healthcare costs decline. Few investments can match that return on investment.

WE ARE ALL ADVOCATES

As an industry, we cannot be passive. Fresh produce doesn’t have the marketing budgets of soda, snacks, or fast food. But what we do have is righteousness of mission. We are providing the food that extends life, sharpens minds, and strengthens communities. That is a story worth telling loudly, consistently, and with one unified voice.

We need policymakers to continue expanding programs like the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program (FFVP) and ensuring that all federally subsidized school meals prioritize fresh, not just shelf-stable or processed options. We must resist any backsliding toward convenience foods and push instead for innovation: individually packaged produce, creative classroom tasting programs, and partnerships that make fruits and vegetables both appealing and accessible.

And we need every stakeholder — from growers to distributors to educators — to see themselves as advocates. Whether your passion is nutrition, equity, or simply doing what’s right for children, this is your cause.

When we place fresh fruits and vegetables on a child’s tray, we are planting seeds — seeds of health, of hope, of possibility. We teach children, in the universal language of food, that they are worthy of nourishment and care. That lesson will echo far beyond the cafeteria walls, shaping their choices, their families, and their futures.

My grandmother’s meals left an imprint on me that shaped my life’s work. Imagine the imprint we can make on millions of children by ensuring that their school meals reflect the very best of what our farms, our industry, and our communities can offer.

Food is more than sustenance. It is medicine, it is education, and it is love. If we want to change the trajectory of our children’s health, and, by extension, the health of our nation, then fresh produce in schools is not a side dish. It is the main course of a better future.

Alex DiNovo is president and chief operating officer at DNO Produce, Columbus, OH.