Senators: Are schools starving kids in the name of reducing lunch calories? [View all]

[RandySF]

NOTE: This article is of special interest to me because our kid ALWAYS comes home starving.

“This has been a battle for common sense in the cafeteria,” Sen. Pat Roberts (R-Kan.) said Friday. “These guidelines were leaving students hungry throughout the school day and athletic events; in the end we were able to convince USDA to listen to reason.”

Last year, the USDA issued a rule restricting how many calories a child could consume by changing school lunch menus. The administration was trying to react to the childhood obesity epidemic, but some lawmakers complained the administration went too far.

“Today, the USDA made the permanent changes we have been seeking to the School Lunch Program,” Sen. John Hoeven (R-N.D.) said. “A one-size-fits-all approach to school lunch left students hungry and school districts frustrated with the additional expense, paperwork and nutritional research necessary to meet federal requirements.”

Hoeven and Sen. Mark Pryor (D-Ark.) recently introduced a bill called the Sensible School Lunch Act that did the same thing as this recent USDA decision to repeal limits on the amount of grains and protein that could be served in a school lunch.

http://thehill.com/blogs/floor-action/senate/194360-senators-claim-victory-in-school-lunch-battle