July 20, 2010
Rahall Bill Calls for National ‘Revolution of Recipes' to Serve Healthier School Meals
Special to Huntingtonnews.net
Beckley, WV (HNN) – U.S. Rep. Nick Rahall (W.Va.), wants to build on the work Cabell County Schools is doing to improve children’s health. Rahall introduced the School Enhancement of America’s Talented Students Act (School EATS) bill to create a competitive grant program for schools to include fresh foods in school lunches and breakfasts and encourage healthier eating habits among students as a measure to combat childhood obesity.
“Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution was in fact a revolution of recipes for Cabell County Schools where they adopted meal plans using more fresh ingredients. One-third of America’s youth are now overweight or obese, and it’s getting worse. We need to act now as a Nation to prevent not only a health crisis, but God forbid these kids be called to our national defense years from now. How prepared will we be to defend our shores? We were caught ill prepared before. We established national child nutrition programs, now it’s time to keep them working,” said Rahall.
“It is a fact that our Nation’s schools now provide over half the calories our children consume through breakfast and lunch programs. We can feed our kids better by simply shifting the recipes our schools use to fresh vegetables and fruits and other healthier alternatives. Healthy habits formed early, last lifetimes. As families grow healthier, our Country prospers. Obesity can bankrupt the health of a nation easier than the most complex far-reaching Wall Street scam. Obesity creates a complex formula of inter-related secondary deadly health risks. We are blessed that we can turn the tide,” said Rahall.
The School EATS Bill creates a competitive grant program for school districts that seek to improve the health of our students by implementing a nutrition program that provides healthier meals. The grant program would give priority to states with the highest obesity rates of at least 30 percent for adults and children and where at least 50 percent of the students are eligible for free or reduced lunch. These states, including my home state of West Virginia, face a steep climb in the battle against child obesity. This grant program will help implement initiatives that will improve the health of the students.”
“If this grant program is as successful as I believe it can be, school districts like Cabell County can continue to build upon dramatic improvements we have made in the previous year to our school lunch and breakfast programs,” said Rhonda McCoy, Director of Food Services for Cabell County Schools. “With the growing national childhood obesity epidemic, and its impact on West Virginia students in particular, we feel immediate action is needed. We must do something to try to improve the length and quality of our students’ lives. We are fully confident we can make our fresh foods program work; we are simply in need of additional financial support to move it forward.”
“Our school is the largest in the state and we serve more than 1,200 lunches and 600 breakfasts daily,” said Frances Hickman, Cafeteria Manager and Head Cook at Cabell Midland High School in Cabell County. “We have worked very hard to introduce fresh food items in our menus this past year and I really don’t want to see us turn back now. Let’s face it, the cost of fresh foods is going to be higher and it’s going to take more hands to prepare it, but we are eliminating preservatives, sodium, and other potentially harmful ingredients while addressing obesity and obesity-related illnesses such as diabetes.”
“I applaud Cabell County Schools for its innovative program, partnering with Mr. Oliver, and continuing with their own ingenuity and hard work. They are leading the way as we all seek to improve the lives and futures of our kids and grandkids,” said Rahall. “I want to ensure that other Congressional districts confronting similar circumstances have the opportunity to implement a program that encourages fresh foods in school meals.”
Rahall’s School EATS bill coincides with the reauthorization of the Child Nutrition Act, the Improving Nutrition for America’s Children Act (H.R. 5504) which passed out of the House Committee on Education and Labor with bipartisan support Thursday.
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Rahall Bill Calls for National ‘Revolution of Recipes' to Serve Healthier School Meals
Special to Huntingtonnews.net
Beckley, WV (HNN) – U.S. Rep. Nick Rahall (W.Va.), wants to build on the work Cabell County Schools is doing to improve children’s health. Rahall introduced the School Enhancement of America’s Talented Students Act (School EATS) bill to create a competitive grant program for schools to include fresh foods in school lunches and breakfasts and encourage healthier eating habits among students as a measure to combat childhood obesity.
“Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution was in fact a revolution of recipes for Cabell County Schools where they adopted meal plans using more fresh ingredients. One-third of America’s youth are now overweight or obese, and it’s getting worse. We need to act now as a Nation to prevent not only a health crisis, but God forbid these kids be called to our national defense years from now. How prepared will we be to defend our shores? We were caught ill prepared before. We established national child nutrition programs, now it’s time to keep them working,” said Rahall.
“It is a fact that our Nation’s schools now provide over half the calories our children consume through breakfast and lunch programs. We can feed our kids better by simply shifting the recipes our schools use to fresh vegetables and fruits and other healthier alternatives. Healthy habits formed early, last lifetimes. As families grow healthier, our Country prospers. Obesity can bankrupt the health of a nation easier than the most complex far-reaching Wall Street scam. Obesity creates a complex formula of inter-related secondary deadly health risks. We are blessed that we can turn the tide,” said Rahall.
The School EATS Bill creates a competitive grant program for school districts that seek to improve the health of our students by implementing a nutrition program that provides healthier meals. The grant program would give priority to states with the highest obesity rates of at least 30 percent for adults and children and where at least 50 percent of the students are eligible for free or reduced lunch. These states, including my home state of West Virginia, face a steep climb in the battle against child obesity. This grant program will help implement initiatives that will improve the health of the students.”
“If this grant program is as successful as I believe it can be, school districts like Cabell County can continue to build upon dramatic improvements we have made in the previous year to our school lunch and breakfast programs,” said Rhonda McCoy, Director of Food Services for Cabell County Schools. “With the growing national childhood obesity epidemic, and its impact on West Virginia students in particular, we feel immediate action is needed. We must do something to try to improve the length and quality of our students’ lives. We are fully confident we can make our fresh foods program work; we are simply in need of additional financial support to move it forward.”
“Our school is the largest in the state and we serve more than 1,200 lunches and 600 breakfasts daily,” said Frances Hickman, Cafeteria Manager and Head Cook at Cabell Midland High School in Cabell County. “We have worked very hard to introduce fresh food items in our menus this past year and I really don’t want to see us turn back now. Let’s face it, the cost of fresh foods is going to be higher and it’s going to take more hands to prepare it, but we are eliminating preservatives, sodium, and other potentially harmful ingredients while addressing obesity and obesity-related illnesses such as diabetes.”
“I applaud Cabell County Schools for its innovative program, partnering with Mr. Oliver, and continuing with their own ingenuity and hard work. They are leading the way as we all seek to improve the lives and futures of our kids and grandkids,” said Rahall. “I want to ensure that other Congressional districts confronting similar circumstances have the opportunity to implement a program that encourages fresh foods in school meals.”
Rahall’s School EATS bill coincides with the reauthorization of the Child Nutrition Act, the Improving Nutrition for America’s Children Act (H.R. 5504) which passed out of the House Committee on Education and Labor with bipartisan support Thursday.
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