Pumpkin seeds, chickpeas, salmon, and strawberries were a few items from a smorgasbord of foods on display yesterday at Mount Saint Agnes Academy, as 23 fourth grade students competed in the Well Bermuda Nutrition School Lunch Challenge.

Five judges, including MSA staff and volunteers, interviewed each student and scored the participants in five categories: nutrition explanation, visual appeal, number of food groups represented, original use of vegetables and environmental sustainability.

“It was a really impressive display from the students and a quite a few of the nutritional explanations were outstanding,” shared one of the judges.

Tyler Furtado won the competition, while Cadence Grayston and Drake Kucharik earned second and third respectively with their healthy lunch creations.

These three students will now compete against students at other schools who earned top healthy lunch box honours.

Lucien Penacho, Jake Roberts, and Megan Soares received honourable mentions for their outstanding displays and explanations.

Speaking about the lead-up to the event, fourth grade teacher, Ms Maura Almeida, shared that there was a mixed reaction among her students.

“At first some of the students were not too excited about the event as they automatically think that if something is healthy, it’s not going to taste good.

“Therefore, they were encouraged to create a meal that would be both healthy and enjoyable to eat.

“Some students, however, have really taken this initiative to heart and have begun looking at the food labels on their own and asking questions about the foods that they are eating.

“The competition has brought about great buzz and excitement, which we hope will contribute to lifelong healthy eaters.”