Health managers, educators and farmers across the country have been more and more concerned with the impact on children's nutrition after the US Department of Agriculture has reduced two programs – totaling more than $ 600 million in funding – This helped put fresh farm food in schools.
“We are really disappointed, in particular since the emphasis is placed on the guarantee that children are in good health, which makes America healthy,” said Diane Prat-Heavener at the Nutrition School, a advocacy group of 50,000 members who supports the K-12 school meal programs.
In early March, the USDA notified that the local program of the school cooperation agreement for schools and the local program of cooperation agreement for the purchase of food purchase would end.
Since 2021These programs have funded schools to buy food on the farm and supported educational programs such as gardening to teach agriculture to children and get their own food. The Nutrition Association estimates that more than 12 million students will be affected by the cuts.
“Our great concern about this loss of local food for schools is the impact on students' consumption,” said Prat-Heavener.
Schools are required to serve a variety of vegetables, fruit and meats, while responding to federal nutritional guidelines for proportions, sodium, sugar and other elements. For students who cannot eat fresh food every day, school cafeterias have become a place to discover and experience new tastes, said Prat-Heavener.
“This can take 10 to 20 exhibitions to a food for a student or a child to try it, to knock it by their lips,” said Melanie Wick, director of food services in Chicopee public schools in Massachusetts.
Served the majority of schools
About 74% of the country's schools participated in school farm programs, according to a USDA 2023 census.
Research has shown that a lack of nutritional meals can have an impact Mental health development Children, especially those of early childhood education, from birth to the age of 8. USDA's own research has found lasting advantages for children, especially preschool children, who consume fresh farm food. When exposed to a nutritional education program that promotes local food, preschool children have “a greater desire to try to try healthy foods”, the USDA reported in 2017.
Tommy Sheridan, deputy director of the National Head Start Association, said that her members were concerned about what these USDA cups will mean for students across the country. Head Start programs receive subsidies from the agricultural service through the child and adult care feeding program. This funding has not yet ended, but Head Start himself faces elimination.
“From a very fundamental perspective, if children do not feel safe, if they are not fed, they will not succeed in class,” said Sheridan.
Wick à Chicopee, Massachusetts, supervises 15 kitchens and feeds nearly 6,000 students per day. She was surprised by the reason mentioned for the cuts.
“In the letter of dismissal, he said that the local food subsidy for schools no longer performs administration priorities as a reason for the end of the grant. Obviously, it stood out to me, because how is the purchase of local food for schoolchildren not a priority? ” She asked.
Massachusetts expects a loss of $ 12 million due to the cuts. Farm grants at school meant that Wick could make school menus using foods that would otherwise be out of its price range. Some came from producers just 30 minutes.
“Local chopped beef costs $ 7 the book. It was not something that really fits into the budget before. But with this funding, the local subsidy for schools, which was specifically reserved for these items, I had this cushion where I could say:” What do you know? We are going to make local chopped beef every two months, “said Wick.
Most schools have tight budgets for meals, she said, often “less than $ 2 per tray, in food costs, to build a full meal”.
“You cannot do these miracles without appropriate funding,” adds Wick.
Farmers also lose
The end of farm programs at school not only compromises student health and food habits, but also relations with local farmers, many of whom depend on business with schools.
Matt Velasquez, a micro-verteum farmer in Louisville, Kentucky, said that he had previously worked with 10 school districts, but now, due to the cuts, is preparing to work with only four districts.
“Some (school districts) are more warned at the financial end and can make things work, but (for), some will be a real struggle,” he said.
Velasquez attributes to food from the farm by changing his life after starting to meet health challenges from food transformed into diet.
“My intestinal health has turned considerably. I felt like I had recovered my life,” he said.
The experience led him to start his family farm, his fresh morning producers and his tour schools throughout Kentucky to talk about the importance of healthy diet and food on the farm.
“We had a fourth year presentation about a month or two,” he said. “We have brought a few samples and (shown) how we cultivate micro-vends. They created growing kits and the children have excited themselves, like” Oh, I can actually do it myself “and have a little more control where they can get the source of their food,” he said.
Velasquez only learned of the farm programs at school last year. During even the short period of time he participated, they were crucial to forging connections.
“Now, it will take a little more convincing, which can happen, it will just take a little more time,” he said about the creation of relations with school districts. “There will be a little more reluctance, because, ok, how much it will have an impact if I bring another supplier for our budget?” He said.
Drew Hanks, an associate professor of consumer sciences at Ohio State University, suggested that the federal government is more transparent as to the expected outcome of the USDA cuts, while schools and farmers attack their new budgetary realities.
“How (government officials) see it as a waste?” What are the implications? ” Hanks asked. “We are faced with many cuts, and I think it would be extremely useful to better understand where the advantage will come from or how the government thinks.”
State officials across the country, including in Illinois,, Wisconsin,, Colorado And Virginiacalled the Trump administration for breaking their cooperative agreements.
Pennsylvania And California have submitted direct calls. Governor Josh Shapiro in Pennsylvania called for the Cup of the Local Aid Program for the purchase of the illegal farm.
Meanwhile, the School Nutrition Association encourages Congress to take measures against current cuts and remains vigilant of any potential to come, Wick said.
“Whatever your economic experience, a hungry child cannot learn. These meals are essential to ensure that students are fed on it,” said Wick. “We should offer them to all students as part of their education, just as we offer a tour of school and manuals to learn.”
