Junk food in school

[Guest guest]

From CSPI - (Center for the Science in the public Interest)

Momentum is building to get soda and junk food out of schools. One remaining

barrier is that many principals, school board members and other school officials

oppose such efforts for fear their schools will lose revenue. Yet, experience is

showing that switching to healthier foods does not cause schools to lose money.

We need your help to reach out to school officials to ask them to urge key

education organizations (such as the National School Board Association, National

Middle School Association and National Association of Secondary School

Principals) to support the Child Nutrition Promotion and School Lunch Protection

Act (for more information on the bill see

http://www.cspinet.org/nutritionpolicy/fedschoolfoods.pdf).

How you can help:

1) Locate your local principals and school board members and obtain their e-mail

addresses. Most schools and school boards have Web sites to help you find this

information. If you need help identifying local school officials, contact us for

assistance: Dana , CSPI, droberts@... or call .

2) Send an e-mail to school principals and school board members in your

community asking them to sign on to a letter to key education organizations in

support of school foods reform. A sample letter from you to your school

official(s) is below, as is the sign-on letter to education organizations.

Please ask them to sign on to by contacting Dana at droberts@...

or .

Thank you very much for your support! If you have any questions, please do not

hesitate to contact us.

Subject line for e-mail to school officials: Please Help Improve School Foods

Message for e-mail to school officials:

I urge you to sign the letter below to the National School Board Association,

National Middle School Association, and National Association of Secondary School

Principals and urge these influential organizations to support the Child

Nutrition Promotion and School Lunch Protection Act. This national bill calls on

the U.S. Department of Agriculture to update its nutrition standards, set in

1979, for foods sold through vending machines, a la carte, and other venues

outside of school meals to ensure that the standards are consistent with current

science and address present-day concerns about children's diets and health. The

current standards no longer make sense. For instance, seltzer water and breath

mints may not be sold, but chocolate candy bars and chips may be.

To sign on to the letter below, please e-mail droberts@.... In your

e-mail, please provide your name, title, school or school district, city, and

state. Also, please forward this e-mail to other school board members or

principals who you think would be interested in signing on. For more information

or if you have questions, contact Dana at the Center for Science in the

Public Interest: droberts@... or .

________________________________________________

National School Boards Association National Association of Secondary School

Principals National Middle School Association

Dear :

We, the undersigned [school board members/superintendents/school principals],

urge the [National School Boards Association/ National Middle School

Association/National Association of Secondary School Principals] to endorse the

bipartisan, bicameral Child Nutrition Promotion and School Lunch Protection Act

(S. 2592/H.R. 5167). As education professionals, we value children's health, and

recognize the importance of good nutrition to children's well-being and ability

to learn.

This bill calls on the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to update its

nutrition standards, set in 1979, for foods sold through vending machines, a la

carte, and other venues outside of meals to ensure that the standards are

consistent with current science and address present-day concerns about

children's diets and health. The current standards no longer make sense. For

instance, seltzer water and breath mints may not be sold, but chocolate candy

bars and chips may be.

While most areas of education are regulated at the local or state level, school

food has long been a federal issue. Congress and USDA set detailed standards for

school lunches and breakfasts, and the federal government invests $10 billion a

year in these programs. In addition, most states and localities leave the

development of dietary guidance to federal agencies.

According to USDA and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC),

students will buy and consume healthful foods and beverages and schools can make

money from selling healthful options. Their survey of 17 schools and school

districts found that, after improving school foods, 12 schools and districts

increased revenue and four reported no change. One school district initially

lost revenue after improving its foods, but later its revenues increased and

even surpassed previous levels.

A national poll by the Wood Foundation found that 90% of parents

and teachers support the conversion of school vending machine contents to

healthy beverages and foods. The sale of low-nutrition foods in schools

undermines parents' ability to help their children eat healthfully.

Other national education-related organizations, including National PTA, the

National Education Association, and the National Association of State Boards of

Education, as well as 90 health-related organizations, have endorsed the Child

Nutrition Promotion and School Lunch Protection Act. We urge you to join them in

supporting this bill.

Sincerely,

Name Title School or School District City, State

Check Nutrition at my site:

Nutrition.teach-nology.com

Ortiz, RD

nrord@...

" The belly rules the mind. "