Political Peanut Butter

How many times did you bring a Pb and j sandwich to lunch? When my mom made my lunch in elementary school a safe bet was always a peanut butter sandwich. I always enjoyed it and rarely got sick of eating it for lunch. Today bringing a peanut butter sandwich to school is sometimes not as easy. Many children in schools today have a peanut allergy that makes it dangerous to be around any kind of peanut products. I work at an after school care program and one of the kindergarteners informed me that the "big" kids came to eat lunch with them in their classroom. On gym days the kids eat lunch in their classrooms because their cafe and gym are one in the same. I thought that the 4th graders came to help out the kindergarteners during lunch time but it turns out that they have a peanut allergy and could not be in their classroom among their peers who had peanut butter sandwiches. The kindergarten also has students with peanut allergies so on Tuesdays (gym day) the kindergarteners are not allowed to bring in peanut products. This issue was addressed in the beginning of the school year. I asked the teacher about this issue and she elaborated on this issue saying that during regular lunch times the students sit at a separate table and bring along one friend to sit with them. She also stated that no school can advertise "Peanut Free" because peanut oils can be used in bread, cake etc. Unless school specifically knows every ingredient their students, faculty, and staff are eating they cannot say their school is "peanut" free. I am going to research this issue more in future postings.