WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. authorities spends billions of {dollars} yearly to assist feed Ok-12 college students wholesome meals in school. U.S. Senator Jack Reed (D-RI) says the federal authorities ought to dish up extra heart-healthy, scrumptious, nutritious sustainable seafood for teenagers in compliance with the federal authorities’s personal dietary requirements.
“In order for you youngsters to develop up wholesome we’ve to serve them wholesome meals that they’ll truly eat. U.S. dietary pointers suggest consuming seafood two instances every week, however the USDA solely purchases sufficient seafood for about one serving per pupil for the complete yr. That should change,” stated Senator Reed. “Placing extra seafood on the menu in class cafeterias in a win-win-win: It’s nutritious, cost-effective, and sustainable — so it’s good for teenagers, the economic system, and the planet — and it tastes good too.”
After COVID-19 disrupted the U.S. home seafood market, Senator Reed started exploring methods to assist fishermen and seafood processors, together with by increasing the U.S. Division of Agriculture’s (USDA) seafood buying energy.
USDA makes use of its Commodity Buying Program (CPP) to buy domestically-produced and processed meals for supply to varsities and meals banks throughout the nation. However, traditionally, solely a small portion of those purchases had been for seafood, which is excessive in protein, nutrient-rich, and a crucial part of a well-balanced food regimen.
The disparity between USDA’s diet pointers and insurance policies and the way they’re truly applied led Reed, alongside together with his colleagues U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley (D-OR) and Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), to send a letter in December of 2020 to the Authorities Accountability Workplace (GAO) requesting a examine on the components limiting USDA seafood purchases by means of the CPP, together with for the Nationwide College Lunch Program (NSLP).
The NSLP yearly offers wholesome meals to 23 million Ok-12 college students nationwide, notably youngsters from low-income households, who obtain free or reduced-price lunches. Because of the scope of its attain, NSLP is uniquely positioned to have an effect on the dietary patterns of American youngsters and adolescents.
In response to the request from Reed, Merkley, and Baldwin, GAO issued a report: “National School Lunch Program: USDA Could Enhance Assistance to States and Schools in Providing Seafood to Students” which discovered that USDA wants to extend the quantity of protein-rich seafood choices in class lunches. The report discovered that the USDA bought a mean of three.4 ounces of seafood per pupil per fiscal yr between 2014 and 2019, which quantities to roughly three fish sticks or one can of tuna yearly per pupil. That pales compared to the virtually 14 kilos of different proteins USDA bought, reminiscent of poultry (137.8 ounces), beef (59 ounces), pork (14.5 ounces), and eggs (7.5 ounces), bought on common per baby per yr. GAO discovered these USDA purchases signify about 43 hen drumsticks, 21 beef patties, 12 slices of ham, and 4 eggs per yr.
Now, Senators Reed and Merkley are urging USDA to observe by means of on GAO’s findings and develop a plan to supply extra seafood to college students by means of the Nationwide College Lunch Program.
They despatched a letter to Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack this week urging implementation of GAO’s suggestions: “In the course of the faculty yr, taking part college students obtain almost two-thirds of their day by day energy from faculty meals,” Reed and Merkley wrote. “The reliance on faculty meals mandates that the NSLP present wholesome, nicely balanced meals to make sure college students obtain the vitamins they want for a nutritious diet. Nevertheless, college students taking part within the NSLP could also be lacking out on the advantages of a balanced food regimen that features nutritious and high-protein seafood.”
Reed says USDA ought to observe GAO’s suggestions to develop a plan to assist seafood buying by means of the NSLP, and to coordinate with the Nationwide Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) on info sharing.
“It’s my hope that USDA will take steps to extend seafood availability for the tens of millions of youngsters throughout the nation who take part within the NSLP, whereas supporting our nation’s fishermen and seafood processors,” stated Reed. “There are such a lot of wholesome, tasty, cost-effective seafood choices on the market which might be easy to arrange and serve. The federal authorities must do its half and that’s what we’re asking USDA to do: supply states and colleges the assets they should serve up extra seafood to college students.”
In keeping with an evaluation on earlier USDA seafood purchases by the Congressional Analysis Service, USDA bought $153 million value of seafood, in comparison with over $1.2 billion in meat merchandise, with seafood contracts awarded to only a handful of processors in a couple of choose states.
