new healthy bread
By JESSICA DALSING
News Writer
New bread products considered to be a healthy alternative to what the University currently uses will appear in North and South Dining Halls on March 17. The new breads and muffins from Natural Oven's Bakery will be offered because of the bread's healthy ingredients.
Yet this is not the latest fad diet supplement but simply nutritious bread. The dining halls will be testing the HealthMax and 100 percent Whole Grain bread along with blueberry muffins from Natural Oven's Bakery.
"The wheat bread in the dining hall is just white bread with a tan," campus First Food Services Dietitian Josie Antonelli said
According to Food Services, the nutritional content of current breads lack many key ingredients to healthy living. However, Natural Oven's breads have a high fiber content, no preservatives or trans fatty acids, and contain flaxseed, a leading source of Omega 3.
In the words of Antonelli, it contains "nothing that you can't pronounce."
Though this bread might sound too good to be true, the product's creator, Paul Stitt, had a hard time convincing future employers of the breads worth. With a master's degree in biochemistry, Stitt worked for an oil company with a grant to find a product that could fight world hunger.
"We found a product that could feed people nutritiously for two cents a day," Stitt said.
Yet Stitt was soon to find that his dream of "doing something to make a difference in the world" was not shared by all. After being blacklisted from food companies, Stitt started his own company with $5,000. Customer response has turned his dream into a reality, with Stitt selling his products all over the Midwest and supporting 300 employees.
"Running the company is only about making enough money to help more people with it," Stitt said.
After five years of hard work and a tip from a physician, Notre Dame has decided to give Natural Oven's Bakery a chance at being a staple in the dining halls.
The products will appear on local Martin's Supermarket shelves today. Tours are also available at the new Natural Oven's Bakery plant in Valparaiso, Indiana.
"We are so proud of what we do that we want to share it," Stitt said.
All News Stories for Monday, March 3, 2003
