GAITHERSBURG, MD. - August 29, 2008 - With their attention turning from the carefree days of summer to the pressures of exams and classrooms, students entering college this fall risk adding an inch to their waistlines by sophomore year, according to a recent study in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association. This fall, more than 135,000 students from coast to coast on 30 campuses served by Sodexo, are poised to beat those odds.

Sodexo, a leading foodservice and facilities management company, is launching The Balanced Way(SM), a proprietary health and nutrition program that encourages students to adopt healthy behavior, and makes it easy for students to get a pre-plated balanced meal when they eat in the dining hall. The plate is half vegetables and fruit; one-quarter protein; and one quarter whole-grain carbohydrates. The Balanced Way is based on the theory of calorie density from the top rated nutrition program "Fill Up Not Out", which offers delicious, satisfying meals that are low in calories, fat and sugar, high in fiber and nutrients.

"Sodexo is blazing a trail in campus dining by promoting favorite foods that are nutritious and healthy because we know lessons learned in college last a lifetime," said Tom Post, president, campus dining at Sodexo. 'Our nutrition focus teaches people what to eat, rather than what not to eat. This key difference is part of our proprietary program that we’ve created with a nutrition expert, Franceen Friefeld. This fall, students on many campuses we serve will have no excuse for gaining that extra inch!"

The Balanced Way was piloted on 11 campuses for two years, and was used by more than 50 percent of cafeteria diners, as well as praised for its innovation and expert design.

A key component to The Balanced Way is nutrition education "“ healthy eating; eating for concentration and energy; healthy snacks and healthy comfort foods are presented to students in interactive games, contests and social media tools.

The Balanced Way will be launched in the fall of 2008 at: Georgetown College, Mississippi University for Women, Oxford College, Bennett College for Women, The College of New Jersey, Wheelock College, Georgia College & State University, Converse College, Massachussets Institute of Technology, Bryant University, Assumption College, Bellarmine University, Transylvania University, St. Peters College, South Carolina State University, Seattle Pacific University, California State University-Monterey Bay, St. Mary’s College of California, Wilkes University, Ithaca College, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College, University of Tennessee-Martin, Lasell College, The Academy of the New Church, Texas A&M University-Kingsville, Franciscan University, Linfield College, Academy of Art University, Athenian School, and Temple University.

(Note to editors: Photos opportunities and interviews are available on these campuses.)

Sodexo, Inc.
Sodexo, Inc. (www.sodexoUSA.com) is a leading integrated food and facilities management services company in the U.S., Canada and Mexico, with $7.3 billion (USD) in annual revenue and 120,000 employees. Sodexo, Inc. serves more than ten million customers daily in corporations, health care, long term care and retirement centers, schools, college campuses, government and remote sites. Sodexo, Inc., headquartered in Gaithersburg, Md., is a member of Sodexo Group, and funds the Sodexo Foundation (www.helpstophunger.org), an independent charitable organization that, since its founding in 1999, has made more than $9.2 million in grants to fight hunger in America.

Sodexo

Sodexo

Sodexo, Inc. (www.sodexoUSA.com ) is a leading integrated facilities management services company in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico, with $7.7 billion (USD) in annual revenue and 120,000 employees. Sodexo serves more than ten million customers daily in corporations, health care, long term care and retirement centers, schools, college campuses, government, and remote sites. Sodexo, Inc., headquartered in Gaithersburg, Md., is a member of Sodexo Group, and funds all administrative costs for the Sodexo Foundation (www.sodexofoundation.org ), an independent charitable organization that, since its founding in 1999, has made more than $11 million in grants to fight hunger in America.

More from Sodexo