school food

Republicans asked about local flexibility and Democrats focused on funding when the Senate Agriculture Committee sat down to hear about they sat down to talk about renewal of school lunch and child nutrition programs. Together the programs cost around $19 billion a year with school meals getting $14 billion. The programs are due for reauthorization in 2015.

First Lady Michelle Obama rallied support for healthier school meals during a "kids state dinner" at the White House, saying to students and parents at the meal "you all have a right to expect that your hard-earned tax dollars will be spent on food that meets basic nutrition standards. It's as simple as that," she said in a transcript.

While Congress wrangles over one-year school-lunch waiver for some schools, the Senate Agriculture Committee will hold its second hearing of the summer on child nutrition. Set for Wednesday, the hearing "will examine school meal programs across the country" with an eye for ways "to continue strengthening these programs to better support America's school children," says the hearing announcement.

The Washington Post says, "At stake in the argument over lunch menus, beyond the natural tension between nutrition and children’s taste buds, are the profits of several large food companies that sell frozen pizzas, french fries and other prepared foods to schools." The story looks at how the new menu rules play out in schools around the nation.

A Republican proposal to give hard-pressed schools a one-year waiver from school lunch reforms is headed for a floor vote in the House with predictions of more turmoil to come. "This is poison," warned Sam Farr, a senior Democrat on the Appropriations Committee. "It will tie up the whole ag appropriations bill." Farr lost on a party-line vote, 29-22, when he tried to delete the waiver during a four-hour committee markup.

The Knoxville, Tenn, schools face an additional $900,000 in breakfast costs next year because of federal regulations to serve more produce, nutrition director Jonathan Dickl said ahead of a potentially key House Appropriations Committee meeting. Dickl spoke in favor of a proposed one-year waiver for some schools from requirements to serve more nutritious meals.

At a meeting with school nutrition leaders, First Lady Michelle Obama said proposals in Congress to scale back nutrition standards were "unacceptable to me, not just as First Lady, but also as a mother." The House Appropriations Committee is scheduled to vote on Thursday on a USDA funding bill that would waive for one year the requirement for healthier meals if schools show they lost money on their food programs for six months.

First Lady Michelle Obama will stress the need "to protect and advance the tremendous progress that has been made" in school meals during a meeting this afternoon, according to the White House. School leaders and other experts have been invited to the White House to discuss school meals.

Ahead of the Senate Appropriations Committee markup today, Ag Secretary Vilsack spoke strongly against expected proposals to change WIC and school lunch rules. "I, for one, find it outrageous to be taking a step back from the commitments we made in 2010," Vilsack said, referring to the reauthorization of child nutrition programs.

The House Appropriations Committee is likely to release today a draft of the FY15 USDA funding bill. It could include provisions, sought by conservative Republicans, to delay or overturn school lunch rules. On Tuesday, House and Senate subcommittees are scheduled to mark up the spending bills. "We expect they will act on Tuesday May 20 to gut nutrition standards through the appropriations process," says the consumer group Center for Science in the Public Interest in a on-line petition.

The House's spending bill for USDA in fiscal 2015 includes provisions sought by some farm groups and by GOP conservatives. The House Appropriations subcommittee on agriculture is scheduled to vote on the bill this morning. The draft makes white potatoes part of the WIC food basket; USDA wanted to exclude them on grounds WIC recipients get enough starch.

First Lady Michelle Obama and AgSec Vilsack announced new school food rules that would phase out advertising of junk foods and sodas in schools, a follow-on to provisions that require schools to serve healthier meals.

Scheduled for Tuesday morning at the White House is an announcement by the First Lady and AgSec Vilsack "on school wellness and to highlight the incredible progress being made in school health environments across the country."