The Food Lobby Goes to School

Where Is Mr. Smith In Washington?

Are we feeding our children in public schools, foods that are making them ill? Are we feeding them foods that a board of independent scientists believe (based upon the best available scientific evidence), are healthy and nutritious for them to eat?

American News Project

Billions of dollars that food service corporations make from the foods provided through the national school lunch program may come at the health and welfare expense of public school children. Should political decisions that impact what foods are fed to students, should the entire decision-making process be made more transparent to the public?

Alice Waters co-writes in the February 19, New York Times Op-Ed piece, No Lunch Left Behind, that the current per student cost of the national school lunch program is $2.57; it would have to be increased to $5.00 per student to feed kids truly healthy meals. The price tag: $24 billion, plus the cost of adding real kitchens in public schools across the country. Would that be worth it to do?

Do you believe that the epidemic of diet-related chronic illnesses, such as type 2 diabetes in children, are directly related to the foods students eat in school? Is the government adequately protecting the health and welfare of children, or caving in to pressures placed upon them from the food industry lobby?