Why and How We Helped California Build a Campaign to Shift Perceptions About School Food Professionals
September 15, 2024 | By
Powered by School Food Professionals is a first-of-its-kind public education campaign that puts a spotlight on the skill, creativity, and commitment of school food professionals working to improve school meals for kids across California. Backed by comprehensive audience research, the campaign serves as a model for other states seeking to dismantle barriers to school food change.
Rooted in Research
To build the Powered by School Food Professionals campaign, we conducted extensive audience research. We worked with the researchers at Food for Climate League to conduct preliminary research to help to quantify public perceptions about school food workers, then to test what messaging themes most resonated with primary audiences — which included parents of current K–12 students and the broader school community. More than 1,800 Californians completed surveys for this research.
We also worked with public opinion researchers at Evitarus to host focus groups representative of the demographic and geographic diversity of parents of current K–12 public school students in California. Through these focus groups, we gained more nuanced insights into parents’ perceptions of school food and school food professionals. We also evaluated reactions to possible campaign messages and creative concepts to understand what resonated most with parents.
While parents cared deeply about their children’s health and the food they ate, parents also admitted to having little direct knowledge of or interaction with school food professionals and their working conditions. They assigned value to school food professionals based on the quality of meals currently being served to their children and not necessarily on the inherent importance of the role in influencing children’s health and food systems. This presented an opportunity to demonstrate to parents who school food professionals are, why they do what they do, and the wide variety of creative, skillful ways they are working to improve school meals for children.
Rooted in Research
To build the Powered by School Food Professionals campaign, we conducted extensive audience research. We worked with the researchers at Food for Climate League to conduct preliminary research to help to quantify public perceptions about school food workers, then to test what messaging themes most resonated with primary audiences — which included parents of current K–12 students and the broader school community. More than 1,800 Californians completed surveys for this research.
We also worked with public opinion researchers at Evitarus to host focus groups representative of the demographic and geographic diversity of parents of current K–12 public school students in California. Through these focus groups, we gained more nuanced insights into parents’ perceptions of school food and school food professionals. We also evaluated reactions to possible campaign messages and creative concepts to understand what resonated most with parents.
While parents cared deeply about their children’s health and the food they ate, parents also admitted to having little direct knowledge of or interaction with school food professionals and their working conditions. They assigned value to school food professionals based on the quality of meals currently being served to their children and not necessarily on the inherent importance of the role in influencing children’s health and food systems. This presented an opportunity to demonstrate to parents who school food professionals are, why they do what they do, and the wide variety of creative, skillful ways they are working to improve school meals for children.
Reach to Date
While the campaign is around its halfway mark, its reach has so far exceeded projections. To date, Powered by School Food Professionals has cumulatively reached more than 11 million people through social media ads, streaming video, online influencers, radio, and billboards. Campaign ads were viewed a total of 29 million times and more than 65,000 people have visited the campaign website.
Additionally, we’ve worked with social media creators that include parents, teachers, collegiate student-athletes, chefs, and foodies who have a combined reach of more than 6 million followers across Instagram and TikTok to share their own stories about their connection to school food and how it’s influenced them, their kids, and their communities. For example, Joanne Molinaro — also known as The Korean Vegan — highlights how Korean foods are now appearing on school lunch menus, as well as why Korean recipes are well suited for cooking in bulk.
We’re looking forward to continuing to grow the campaign over the course of the 2024–25 school year.
Reach to Date
While the campaign is around its halfway mark, its reach has so far exceeded projections. To date, Powered by School Food Professionals has cumulatively reached more than 11 million people through social media ads, streaming video, online influencers, radio, and billboards. Campaign ads were viewed a total of 29 million times and more than 65,000 people have visited the campaign website.
Additionally, we’ve worked with social media creators that include parents, teachers, collegiate student-athletes, chefs, and foodies who have a combined reach of more than 6 million followers across Instagram and TikTok to share their own stories about their connection to school food and how it’s influenced them, their kids, and their communities. For example, Joanne Molinaro — also known as The Korean Vegan — highlights how Korean foods are now appearing on school lunch menus, as well as why Korean recipes are well suited for cooking in bulk.
We’re looking forward to continuing to grow the campaign over the course of the 2024–25 school year.
A Model for Other States
We applaud California for its investment in uplifting school food professionals, who are the cornerstone of school food change. We encourage other states that understand the opportunity better school food represents to similarly focus on showcasing the value of the labor force needed to advance school food goals.
School food change is much more difficult when parents and other stakeholders don’t recognize the critical role school food professionals play in supporting children’s health and wellbeing, as well as how they impact communities and the food system at large.
By sharing our journey building and executing this research-backed campaign, we hope it provides valuable insights other states can draw from as they work to improve the quality of the food schools serve to children.
A Model for Other States
We applaud California for its investment in uplifting school food professionals, who are the cornerstone of school food change. We encourage other states that understand the opportunity better school food represents to similarly focus on showcasing the value of the labor force needed to advance school food goals.
School food change is much more difficult when parents and other stakeholders don’t recognize the critical role school food professionals play in supporting children’s health and wellbeing, as well as how they impact communities and the food system at large.
By sharing our journey building and executing this research-backed campaign, we hope it provides valuable insights other states can draw from as they work to improve the quality of the food schools serve to children.
