On Wednesday, January 19, the Worldwatch Institute celebrated the publication of its fifteenth State of the World report with an afternoon of speakers and panels centered on agricultural development, hunger, and poverty alleviation. The new report, State of the World 2011: Innovations that Nourish the Planet, focuses largely on agricultural innovations that reduce hunger, increase agricultural productivity, […]
Nutrition & Food Access
First 2010 AFRI Awards Announced
USDA’s National Institute for Food and Agriculture (NIFA) dribbled out two announcements last week on 2010 awards under the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI). AFRI is the largest of several NIFA competitive grants research, education and extension programs. On January 13, a grant award to Oregon State University for childhood obesity prevention in rural […]
USDA Releases New School Lunch Nutrition Standards
On Thursday, January 13, USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) published revised nutrition requirements for the National School Lunch and School Breakfast Programs in the Federal Register. The proposed changes, which are based on the recommendations in this 2009 report from the National Academies’ Institute of Medicine, would increase the availability of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and fat-free and low-fat […]
Child Nutrition Reauthorization Passes with Farm to School
On Thursday, December 2, the US House of Representatives passed the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act, otherwise known as the Child Nutrition Reauthorization (CNR) bill, by a vote of 264 to 157. Since the bill is identical to the one passed by the Senate in August, it will now be sent to President Obama for his […]
Child Nutrition Bill Gains Support of Representatives McGovern and DeLauro
The Child Nutrition reauthorization bill, a landmark opportunity for lawmakers to establish stronger nutrition standards in schools, improved its odds of passage in the lame-duck session of the House this week when Representatives Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) and Jim McGovern (D-MA) removed their opposition to the bill. DeLauro and McGovern had opposed the bill, and in […]
Child Nutrition Reauthorization on Hold until at least November
With the adjournment of Congress late last night, among the pieces of legislation left unresolved is the Child Nutrition reauthorization bill. The bill inched closer to passage in past weeks, and the White House continues to urge lawmakers to act — see Politico’s recent article on Michelle Obama’s involvement — but those watching the progress […]
Last Opportunity for a Better School Lunch
Friday Update — The House will not be taking any votes again until next Wednesday, September 29. A vote on the child nutrition bill will likely occur on Wednesday or Thursday, so there is still time to act! ACTION ALERT September 22, 2010 Urge Your Representative to Move Forward Now on Farm to School Funding […]
Legislative Update and Action
One week down, three weeks maximum left to go before the congressional recess prior to the November elections. The Senate this week passed the small business tax cut bill and draft bills and trial balloons are circulating on the big tax cut extension bill, but on the four bills left on the NSAC agenda – […]
Congress Back for Three Weeks – Time (Barely) for Action
Summer recess has come to a close and Congress returns to Washington next week, with three weeks and less than 12 actual legislative days before the start of the new federal fiscal year on October 1. With a packed agenda – including a small business tax bill, extensions of some or all of the 2001 […]
Senate Passes Child Nutrition Bill
On Thursday, August 5, the Senate passed a child nutrition program re-authorization bill by unanimous consent. The bill provides a 6-cent per meal increase in school lunch reimbursements, expands school meal eligibility, and establishes stronger nutrition standards for all foods sold in schools. It also includes $40 million in mandatory funding for the Farm to […]
Legislative Roundup: Farm Credit Funding Passes, Other Food and Farm Legislation Could Move
[Friday July 30 update to story below — A measure to fund the Pigford II class action settlement between USDA and black farmers is now expected to come to the Senate floor early next week as a stand alone measure. The Food Safety Modernization Act (S 510) is now not expected to be taken up […]
Ad Calls for Urgent Action on Child Nutrition Bill
On Wednesday, July 21, a full page Feeding America advertisement appeared in CQ Today and Roll Call, two Capitol Hill publications, urging Congress to pass a “robust, well-funded child nutrition bill this summer.” Support for the ad stems from a large and diverse group of organizations, including the Alliance to End Hunger, the American Cancer […]
Child Nutrition with Farm to School Passes House Committee
On Thursday, July 15, the House Education and Labor Committee approved the child nutrition reauthorization bill authored by Chairman George Miller (D-CA) (Improving Nutrition for America’s Children Act, H.R. 5504) by a vote of 32 -13 with Republicans Todd Platts (PA), Michael Castle (DE), and Vernon Ehlers (MI) joining all of the Democratic members of […]
Time Running Out for a Healthy School Lunch
ACTION ALERT July 9, 2010 Urge Your Representative to Move Forward Now on Farm to School Funding in the Child Nutrition Bill! If your Congressman sits on the House Education and Labor Committee – See Chart Below – please make a call in support of a healthy school lunch. Time is running short for Congressional re-authorization […]
Say It Ain’t So Mr. Secretary!
One day. Two House of Representatives hearings. USDA schizophrenia. That is one of the story lines from Thursday, July 1. See here and here for our earlier posts on Thursday’s Child Nutrition hearing and Conservation Program hearing. But now for the bigger, underlying story. The Child Nutrition Reauthorization bill needs to pass and needs to […]
Child Nutrition Bill with Farm to School Begins to Move in House
On Thursday, July 1, the full House Education and Labor Committee held its first hearing on Chairman George Miller’s (D-CA) Improving Nutrition for America’s Children Act. Throughout the hearing endorsements for the Farm to School program were loud and clear, both from Committee members and from Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack. The Miller bill includes […]
House Child Nutrition Bill Includes Farm to School
On Thursday, June 10, House Education and Labor Chairman George Miller (D-CA), Rep. Todd Platts (R-PA), Rep. Carolyn McCarthy (D-NY), Rep. Rosa De Lauro (D-CT), and Rep. James McGovern (D-MA) introduced the Improving Nutrition for America’s Children Act of 2010. The bill will become the basic vehicle for House consideration of the five-year reauthorization of […]
New Farm to School Act in House
Last Friday, May 28, Representatives Betty McCollum (D-MN), Tom Latham (R-IA), and Bobby Scott (D-VA) introduced the National Farm to School Act of 2010 (H.R. 5456) along with 22 original cosponsors. The Act would authorize USDA to administer competitive grants of up to $100,000 to support planning, implementation, training, and technical assistance for schools, educational […]
Congress Yet to Finish on Pigford, Farm Credit, Child Nutrition Funding
Last week we reported on several major pending pieces of legislation. At that time, two bills — the so-called tax extenders bill and the emergency supplemental appropriations bill — seemed like they might be resolved by today, the beginning of the congressional recess week for Memorial Day. Alas, while progress was made on both this […]