“For more than half a century, the National School Lunch and Breakfast Programs have helped reduce hunger and malnutrition among our nation's children and adolescents, and since their inception, the school meal programs have served as tools to promote healthy child development and growth. The finalized school meal standards are the strongest to date, and provide more fruits and vegetables, lean proteins, and overall healthier meals for our children. These standards will undoubtedly make significant improvements in the health of all our nation's children.

 

“With one in four children in the United States struggling with hunger and one in three obese or overweight, these standards could not come at a more critical time. Reversing the childhood obesity epidemic in a single generation – as First Lady Michelle Obama has called upon our nation to do – won’t be easy. It will require a long-term, sustained commitment to attacking this issue across multiple fronts. The new standards for the National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program will make great strides toward eliminating this threat to our children's health. All children deserve a healthy future, which starts with access to healthy, nutritious meals every day.

 

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