Canby School District 4th Grader Voted National Winner in the 2017 Sodexo Future Chefs Challenge

GAITHERSBURG, Md., May 2, 2017 /3BL Media/ – In a cooking challenge designed to engage school students in creating and enjoying healthy eating habits, Madison Bigej of Canby, Oregon, was voted national winner in the 2017 Sodexo Future Chefs: Healthy Comfort Food Challenge. Madison, with her recipe for Cauliflower Tots, bested other student recipes in her home school district, then went on to outdo competing recipes among the top 40 entries from around the U.S. before securing the top spot as national winner.

Sodexo, world leader in Quality of Life services, invited elementary school students in Sodexo-served school districts across the United States to create comfort food options that kids will enjoy. Out of nearly 2,500 entries, Madison was one of five finalists selected to create videos of their recipes, and the public was invited to vote for its favorite. By scoring the most votes for her winning Cauliflower Tots recipe, Madison will be honored with a celebratory event at her school and more than $2,000 worth of prizes.

Now in its seventh year, the Sodexo Future Chefs program encourages better eating by actively involving students in good nutrition. Students participating in the program represent 1,300 Sodexo-served elementary schools in 256 school districts and 30 states.

Sodexo is committed to taking measurable sustainable actions that ensure a brighter future in the areas of health and wellness, environmental stewardship and community development. The Future Chefs program is one of the many ways Sodexo shares its health and well-being expertise with the clients, customers and communities it serves. Another example is Sodexo’s use of research-based principles recommended in the Smarter Lunchroom Movement, developed by the Cornell Center for Behavioral Economics in Child Nutrition Programs to equip primary and secondary school lunchrooms with tools to improve the eating behaviors of children. 

Watch Madison make her Cauliflower Tots here and join the Sodexo Future Chefs social media conversation by using the hashtag #SDXFutureChefs in related Tweets and posts.

Sodexo USA is an American business that is part of a global, Fortune 500 company with a presence in 80 countries. Delivering more than 100 services across North America that enhance organizational performance, contribute to local communities and improve quality of life, Sodexo is a leading provider of sustainable, integrated facilities management and food service operations. It employs 123,000 Americans at 12,500 sites across the country and indirectly supports tens of thousands of additional U.S. jobs through its annual purchases of $9.2 billion in goods and services from small to large American businesses. In support of local communities across the U.S., the Sodexo Stop Hunger Foundation has contributed close to $30 million over the past 20 years to help feed children in America impacted by hunger.

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