Almost fourteen years ago Michelle Obama implemented her plan for healthy lunches into public schools – but has that healthy lunch initiative become a lost cause? Limited access to resources, rising costs, and children’s taste preferences hinder the healthy lunch movement from staying prevalent and successful.

Because America has such a wide range of weather, cityscapes, and communities, it’s hard to create a “one size fits all” program for healthy lunches. In many rural areas, residents have limited access to a variety of foods – there aren’t several different grocery stores to pick from in these areas, there is typically one convenience store residents can shop from. In low-income communities, opting for a healthier lunch comes with a high price; according to a study by The Plutus Foundation, unhealthy food is around $1.50 cheaper per day than a healthier option. Low budget schools providing for a large population of children can’t afford to spend the extra money on foods that don’t save for a long time – a cookie can be preserved much longer than a strawberry.

All of this to say: the healthy lunch movement is not a lost cause. With childhood obesity rates on the rise, what American schools need is healthier lunch options – we just need a more universal way to enact it.