Leahy Successfully Leads Effort To Keep Milk In Schools
And Bring Farm-Fresh Produce To Cafeterias

WASHINGTON (Thursday, May 20)  -- Sen. Patrick Leahy led a successful bipartisan effort this week to ensure that dairy products remain part of federal school nutrition plans.  The Senate Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee met Wednesday to deliberate over legislation that sets the structure of federal child nutrition programs.  During the meeting, the committee finalized broad child nutrition legislation expected to pass the Senate unanimously within weeks. 

The dairy provisions included in the legislation by Leahy retain requirements in federal school nutrition programs to require schools to offer milk as part of a healthy school meal plan.  The provisions also authorize schools to sell milk products throughout the school day, without regard to soda exclusivity contracts.  Without Leahy’s provisions, a broader definition of nutritional beverages threatened the availability of milk at schools.  Leahy said that members of soy-producing states were especially interested in replacing some milk with soy-based beverages.  Leahy cited studies that report 90 percent of female teenagers are not receiving adequate amounts of calcium as evidence that schools need to offer more milk as part of their nutrition programs.   He said 20 years ago, children drank twice as much milk than soda, but today they drink twice as much soda than milk.

Leahy, a former chairman of the panel, has fought to improve child nutrition programs for years.  Also included in the committee legislation is Leahy’s Farm-to-Cafeteria program which brings fresh foods from local farms into school lunch rooms.  Leahy also successfully included a provision that will increase the amount of federal grant money allocated to smaller states like Vermont for the administration of federal school meal programs.

The package of child nutrition reforms will now go to the Senate floor, where it is expected to pass unanimously.  Leahy and members of the Senate Agriculture Committee are hopeful that conference negotiations with the House of Representatives will be quickly completed and the bill will be signed by the President before June 30, when existing authority for the federal child nutrition programs expires.

 “Milk is a key part of a child’s diet, and it should remain a key part of the menu in school cafeterias nationwide,” said Leahy.  “During the school day, we prepare our children in the classroom for the future.  The food we offer them in the cafeteria should prepare them in the same way.  The Farm-to-Cafeteria program will bring farm-fresh produce into the schools, helping school children eat more healthy foods and helping farmers connect with their communities.”

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