USDA Stands Up For Kids’ Health, Maintains Nutrition Standards for Food Served in Schools

Balanced nutrition is a cornerstone of good health. This is particularly true for children, whose growth depends upon the quality of food they eat. If kids eat delicious and nutritious food early, they often develop a lifetime preference for healthy eating that can improve their overall health, while supporting success in school and throughout life.

Unfortunately, too many children do not have regular access to nutritious food. Although they may receive healthy meals while in school, a variety of challenges can prevent them from eating well after the final bell rings. All children, regardless of background or zip code, deserve to eat well and get the nourishment they need for a long, healthy life.

Congress has sought to address this problem by establishing strong nutritional requirements for breakfast, lunch, and snacks that are served in public schools in a new iteration of the Child Nutrition Act in 2010. In addition to including the aforementioned nutrition standards, the law expanded programs that serve meals to children in early care and education settings, after school, on weekends, and during school holidays.

These programs feed low-income children and promote physical activity, learning, and safety while their parents are at work. They are required to meet minimum nutritional standards—for example, serving milk, fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and lean protein—so that kids get the nutrients they need and we can help prevent obesity and related diseases.

Recently, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has taken two important actions to help defend vital nutritional standards for children.

First, USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack clarified for House Republicans that waiving the nutrition standards is prohibited by federal law after Republicans attempted to allow schools and organizations to serve less healthy breakfasts and snacks.

In a letter to House Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee members and Rep. John Kline (R-MN), Chairman of the House Education and the Workforce Committee, Vilsack confirmed that the vast majority of school districts—nearly 90 percent—have already been certified as meeting the new school nutritional standards. In addition, the USDA will be providing technical assistance to school districts that need support as they implement the updated nutritional standards, including the approximately 10 percent of districts who have yet to be certified. Read the full letter from the USDA here.

Next, the USDA released a final rule that continued the department’s policy of excluding white potatoes from being provided under the Special Supplemental Program for Women, Infants and Children, known as WIC, despite a push for inclusion by some members of Congress.

The USDA based its decision on valid, scientific evidence related to the nutritional health of the low-income mothers and children served by the WIC program. As the USDA explained in its rule, the restriction of white potatoes was recommended by the Institute of Medicine, which found that people already consume the recommended amount of starchy vegetables, including white potatoes, so there is no need to include white potatoes in a program designed to supplement the nutritional needs of mothers and children.

Specifically, IOM data show that white potatoes, which are relatively inexpensive, are already the most widely consumed vegetable, so including them in the WIC food packages “would not contribute towards meeting the nutritional needs of the WIC population and would not support the goal of expanding the types and varieties of fruits and vegetables available to program participants, as recommended by IOM.”

Furthermore, a recent study found that increased consumption of white potatoes in any form has the largest positive association with weight gain compared with any other food. Read the full letter from the USDA here. 

Both of these actions reflect the USDA taking stands on behalf of children’s health. The department’s commitment to the importance of good nutrition to improve students’ health, educational success, and lifelong achievement is commendable.