House delays vote on school lunch controversy

BY EMILY NELSON
JUNE 12, 2014
 

WASHINGTON – The House of Representatives delayed voting on an agriculture appropriations bill late Wednesday after a battle over language allowing schools to opt out of new healthy food standards for the federal school lunch program for up to one year.

 

It wasn't only politicians weighing in to the debate this week. Even school lunch ladies spoke up.

 

The School Nutrition Association (SNA) represents 55,000 school cafeterias nationwide. Several association leaders say that though the new federal standards — championed by first lady Michelle Obama and passed into law in the 2010 Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act — have good intentions but are too restrictive and aren't accomplishing their goals.

 

Cindy Marion is the child nutrition director representing Yadkin County Schools in North Carolina where up to 90% of kids participate in the free or reduced-price school lunches. She was one of many school nutritional experts who participated in the association's news conference Wednesday to support an opt-out for schools.

 

"A lot of kids are walking away from the program," Marion said. "When a student walks away, we are not affecting their diet in any way and nobody wins."

 

The nutrition association reports that since the new standards were put in place in 2012, more than 1 million kids have stopped eating school lunches. The association also said many students who still participate and are required to take the mandatory fruit and vegetable servings aren't eating them, resulting in $3.8 million of wasted produce thrown in the trash each day.

 

"The SNA wants to work with Congress to come up with a common-sense solution," said Joannie Miller, SNA member and director of child nutrition programs at Bogalusa City Schools in Louisiana. "The nutritional standards should not be one-size-fits-all."

 

Supporters of the new federal standards claim the negative statistics aren't representative of the bigger picture. The 1 million students that the nutrition association claims are no longer eating school lunches make up less than 3% of the nearly 37 million children who are participating and benefiting from better nutrition.

 

"We know now that bad nutrition can get in the way of their ability to learn," said Rep. George Miller, D-Calif.

 

Celebrity chef Tom Colicchio, of the Top Chef reality television show, joined Democrats on Capitol Hill Wednesday to scold Republicans for attempting to derail the new nutritional standards that he said are helping combat childhood obesity.

 

"We're the adults here," Colicchio said. "We should not let young kids dictate their eating habits."

 

Rep. Robert Aderholt, R-Ala., chairman of the House Appropriations agriculture subcommittee, proposed the changes to the federal school lunch program last month, saying the new standards were eating into school budgets.

 

"It's common sense that regulations shouldn't put local school nutrition programs under water," Aderholt spokesman Brian Rell said. "The temporary one-year waiver just throws them a financial lifeline."

 

The House is expected to vote on amendments to the USDA spending bill in the coming weeks. The Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act was part of Michelle Obama's 2010 Let's Move campaign to ensure nutritional foods were being served in school cafeterias in a bid to reduce childhood obesity. The White House issued a statement Tuesday threatening to veto the appropriations bill if it allows schools to opt out of the program.