On January 13, 2010, The U.S. Department of Agriculture published a proposed rule to update the nutrition standards for meals served through the National School Lunch and School Breakfast programs as part of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010, signed into law by President Barack Obama on December 13, 2010.
The new proposed meal requirements will raise standards for the first time in fifteen years and will make critical changes to school meals and help improve the health and nutrition of nearly 32 million kids that participate in school meal programs every school day, an important component of First Lady Michelle Obama's Let's Move! initiative to solve the challenge of childhood obesity within a generation.
The proposed changes to school meal standards, which would add more fruits, vegetables, whole grains, fat-free and low-fat milk to school meals, are based on recommendations released in October 2009 by the National Academies' Institute of Medicine (IOM) and presented in their report, School Meals: Building Blocks for Healthy Children. Schools would also be required to limit the levels of saturated fat, sodium, calories, and trans fats in meals. A comparison of the proposed nutrition standards can be viewed here.
The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act gives schools and communities new tools to meet the challenge of providing more nutritious food including increasing school lunch reimbursements by 6 cents per meal, and increasing technical assistance. School meal programs are a partnership between USDA, State agencies and local schools, and USDA will work with schools and communities to help improve meals so that they are consistent with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans.
According to government data, almost 32 percent of children 6 to 19 years of age are overweight or obese; the number of obese children in this age range has trebled in the last few decades. These children are more likely to have risk factors associated with chronic diseases such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and Type 2 diabetes. Updated school meal standards are a central part of the strategy developed by President Obama's Childhood Obesity Task Force to provide healthier food at schools, and in turn, work toward resolving childhood obesity.
USDA is seeking input on the proposed rule from the public through April 13, 2011. Those interested in reviewing the proposal and offering comments are encouraged to do so at www.regulations.gov
According to USDA, comments will be considered carefully in finalizing the rule before it is implemented.
source: USDA press release
Monday, January 17, 2011
Congress Pours Money Down the Drain
According to Food & Water Watch, bottled water costs for Congress were a staggering $190,000 in the first quarter of 2010.
The watchdog group is suggesting that members of Congress should support investment in the nation's drinking water infrastructure, rather than spending public dollars on drinking water served in plastic containers.
The issue of clean water becomes more important each year as communities find themselves struggling to obtain enough of the resource to fill their needs.
Legislators must choose between environmental issues and constituent needs. Obviously, big business does its part to influence Congress. In a perfect world, our officials would do the right thing when water-related issues came to the table.
The watchdog group is suggesting that members of Congress should support investment in the nation's drinking water infrastructure, rather than spending public dollars on drinking water served in plastic containers.
The issue of clean water becomes more important each year as communities find themselves struggling to obtain enough of the resource to fill their needs.
Legislators must choose between environmental issues and constituent needs. Obviously, big business does its part to influence Congress. In a perfect world, our officials would do the right thing when water-related issues came to the table.
Thursday, December 23, 2010
Farmers and Consumer Groups Fight Consolidation of Food Suppliers
In December, a coalition of consumer and farmer groups urged the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and Department of Justice (DOJ) to follow up its final competition workshop with concrete actions to address the anti-competitive practices that benefit a few large players in the food system.
At a press conference at the National Press Club, national consumer group Food & Water Watch joined farmers and ranchers to discuss how consolidation in the retail sector has affected the marketplace. Consolidation has given the largest retailers considerable purchasing power that allows them to exert influence over food manufacturers, meat processors, produce shippers and other suppliers to reduce their prices and require specific packaging and manufacturing practices. Suppliers also pressure farmers to lower their prices and workers to lower their wages. This trend leads to a few large companies controlling the entire market, forcing consumers to choose less healthy foods.
"The American food chain is shaped like an hour-glass where a handful of large powerful companies stand between more than 300 million consumers and two million farmers. Thanks to mergers and consolidation, vibrant competition in the retail grocery industry is all but dead," said Wenonah Hauter, Executive Director of Food & Water Watch. "There is an illusion of choice between many different but similar processed foods, but almost all of them are sold by the same few companies."
Food costs have risen considerably over the past decade. Food inflation was especially high during 2007 and 2008. The higher prices are especially difficult for lower-income consumers. According to a 2008 report by the Congressional Research Service, even a 4 or 5 percent increase in the price of food has a significant impact on the purchasing power of lower income families.
A majority of studies reviewed by the USDA found that increased grocery chain consolidation contributed to an increase in consumer grocery prices. As prices increase, families turn to lower cost processed foods over more healthful options.
With 40 percent of American households earning less than $39,000, a small increase in the price of food can dramatically erode family food security. The USDA recently reported that one out of 7 households is suffering from hunger and one out of 4 children do not have enough to eat.
"Children are the ones left out on the margins," said Hauter. "As food has become more consolidated, processed foods have become more prevalent and kids have become more obese. It’s no coincidence that 75 percent of snack chips and 80 percent of kid’s cereals are sold by the top four firms, and the four biggest cookie manufacturers sell two-thirds of all cookies."
At a press conference at the National Press Club, national consumer group Food & Water Watch joined farmers and ranchers to discuss how consolidation in the retail sector has affected the marketplace. Consolidation has given the largest retailers considerable purchasing power that allows them to exert influence over food manufacturers, meat processors, produce shippers and other suppliers to reduce their prices and require specific packaging and manufacturing practices. Suppliers also pressure farmers to lower their prices and workers to lower their wages. This trend leads to a few large companies controlling the entire market, forcing consumers to choose less healthy foods.
"The American food chain is shaped like an hour-glass where a handful of large powerful companies stand between more than 300 million consumers and two million farmers. Thanks to mergers and consolidation, vibrant competition in the retail grocery industry is all but dead," said Wenonah Hauter, Executive Director of Food & Water Watch. "There is an illusion of choice between many different but similar processed foods, but almost all of them are sold by the same few companies."
Food costs have risen considerably over the past decade. Food inflation was especially high during 2007 and 2008. The higher prices are especially difficult for lower-income consumers. According to a 2008 report by the Congressional Research Service, even a 4 or 5 percent increase in the price of food has a significant impact on the purchasing power of lower income families.
A majority of studies reviewed by the USDA found that increased grocery chain consolidation contributed to an increase in consumer grocery prices. As prices increase, families turn to lower cost processed foods over more healthful options.
With 40 percent of American households earning less than $39,000, a small increase in the price of food can dramatically erode family food security. The USDA recently reported that one out of 7 households is suffering from hunger and one out of 4 children do not have enough to eat.
"Children are the ones left out on the margins," said Hauter. "As food has become more consolidated, processed foods have become more prevalent and kids have become more obese. It’s no coincidence that 75 percent of snack chips and 80 percent of kid’s cereals are sold by the top four firms, and the four biggest cookie manufacturers sell two-thirds of all cookies."
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