Senate approves $4.5B child nutrition bill

[cal04]

Source: The Hill

The Senate passed a child nutrition bill by unanimous consent Thursday afternoon.

The $4.5 billion proposal, sponsored by Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-Ark.), expands eligibility for school meal programs; establishes nutrition standards for all foods sold in schools; and provides a 6-cent increase for each school lunch to help cafeterias serve healthier meals.

Lincoln’s bill passed unanimously out of the Senate Agriculture Committee in March. The bill is fully paid for.

The Senate bill is less generous than a $10 billion measure supported by the White House.

Read more: http://thehill.com/blogs/healthwatch/other/112923-senate-passes-child-nutrition-bill

[onehandle]

1. Socialism! Back in my day, children Worked for their meals.

[jwirr]

3. LOL I am old enough to tell you that I washed dishes in the school

kitchen so my brother and I could have hot lunches. That was before this wonderful program existed and I want to see it fully funded. I should have been in the classroom like the rest of the kids.

[villager]

2. ...especially since more kids will need the program, now that food stamps are being cut?

:shrug:

[swilton]

4. I'm a sceptic about this bill

with it being authored by Blanche Lincoln and have a feeling that it's a giveaway to the corporate agriculture and food industries which in the long and short run are poisoning are kids or are killing them due to childhood obesity.

Does anyone know if there is anything in this about linking local farmers with organic food with the local schools? I believe this would be a far better approach in that it would be as financially healthy as it would promote the physical health of our children.

I recently saw the 2008 documentary FOOD BEWARE: THE ORGANIC FOOD REVOLUTION IN FRANCE. The film argued that the cancer rates in children were rising exponentially and the long-term life-expectancies can be expected to decline. The culprit is believed to be exposure to the pesticides and fertilizers used in the corporate agriculture process - as well as the processed food industry which supplies us basically with synthetic food. I highly recommend the movie!

Unfortunately I'm relocating and do not always have access to the internet - thus I'm unable to find out a lot about legislation such as this bill.