April 27
We Need Better School Food for Our Kids!
Who would have thought that something as beneficial-sounding
as the federal school lunch program, which provides lunch to low-income
children, would be a culprit in the childhood obesity epidemic? Many experts believe it could be.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture runs the school lunch
program, providing free or reduced price lunches to kids living near the
poverty level by sending schools surplus commodities it buys up from U.S.
agri-businesses. But in addition to
feeding poor kids, the USDA’s other goal in the program is providing price
support to farmers and agri-business who can’t sell enough of their
products. As new White House chef Sam
Kass points out, these disparate allegiances create a problem: what’s good for farmers is not necessarily good
for kids. Excess commodities tend to be
mostly meat-, potato- and corn-based products.
Processed into hamburger patties, French fries and frozen pizzas, these
surplus foods are then shipped to schools whose students qualify for free or
reduced price lunches.
Some 30 million kids across America get lunch- and sometimes
breakfast- from this program. But
demographically, these are mostly the same kids – those from families living
near the poverty level – where rates of obesity have climbed to alarming
percentages. The percentage of obese U.S. children
and teens doubled between 1971 and 2006, according to the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention, but they are disproportionately found in low income
communities. Teens in poor communities are twice as likely to be obese as teens
in their national peer group, according to Douglas Besharov, a scholar in
social welfare issues with the American Enterprise Institute. Could there be a link – and a solution to be
sought after? What if these kids could
also get locally-grown, green, leafy vegetables and fruits on their lunch
trays?
Advocates of locally-grown whole foods are starting to step
forward and talk about changing what foods are made available to school
children. Some of these advocates are in high places: First Lady Michelle Obama recently planted a
vegetable garden on the White House lawn, saying she wants to show children where
locally grown vegetables come from. Presidential chef Sam Kass is a proponent of
greening up the school lunch program and has convened meetings on the subject. The New America Foundation says that 70
percent of schools receiving federal school lunch assistance do not meet even
the loose nutrition requirements the government sets for serving this
food.
The moment is ripe for harvesting change. This year,
Congress will vote on reauthorizing the Child Nutrition and WIC Act, which not
only governs the federal school lunch program but also set nutritional
standards for all foods sold in schools.
The last reauthorization in 2004 brought significant improvements such
as requiring schools to have wellness programs.
But more surely needs to be done to green up the cafeteria tray. The Senate Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry
Committee began hearings on reauthorization. For every advocate of healthy
foods testifying before the Senate committee there was also a representative of
agri-business or food companies whose primary interest is not losing the school
market. A lot is at stake – to both
parties.
We need a Green Food Corps to make sure this moment is not
lost, to make sure that locally-grown, leafy green vegetables and fruits find
their way to our nation’s schools.
The National Parent Teacher Association told the Senate
committee on March 31 that it wants to see five changes in the Child Nutrition
Act. Among them, said NPTA chief executive Byron Garrett, are to requiring “the
development of best practices for the processing of USDA commodities,” to more
closely align with the government’s own 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans statement
about nutritious foods needed. Secondly, the National PTA and a slew of other
groups want the Child Nutrition Act to set national nutrition standards “for
school foods sold outside of the school meals programs,” so that chips and soda
sold in vending machines don’t undermine efforts to nourish kids with what is
sold on the lunch line.