TINLEY PARK, Ill. — Victor Andrew High School students literally got a taste of their school’s new plan for improving their health when the owners of H.U.M.A.N. Healthy Vending visited to distribute free samples during lunch periods.
Andrew is the first of the three schools in high school District 230 to install healthy vending machines in preparation for the Smart Snacking School Program, a federal mandate which went into effect on July 1 and requires all schools which partake in the National School Lunch
Program to offer healthy, low-calorie options in their cafeterias and vending machines. Healthing Vending Franchise owner John LaRoy says he hopes the machines will be expand to Sandburg and Stagg and that they are already in the Lincoln Way district.
The white machines sell all natural, organic, snacks and beverages. The snacks contain whole grains, all natural sweeteners and colors, and many are vegan friendly and gluten free.
“We hope that by doing this we can break the stigma that healthy food doesn’t taste good,” says LaRoy. “We want kids to get out of their bad eating habits and start making healthier choices.”
LaRoy himself is a baseball coach at Marist High School and says he truly believes in maintaining a healthy lifestyle.
“One day after practice I wanted to get a snack and I looked at the vending machines by the gym, but there was nothing in there I would eat after a workout. And definitely nothing I wanted my players eating,” he explains. “I figured there had to be a better option, so I looked it up and found H.U.M.A.N. It seemed like a great company and I started my own franchise for the south suburbs.”
Some of the products being tasted by students Thursday were Blue Sky soda, a line of low-calorie soft drinks which are made