Yesterday, with the First Lady by his side, President Obama signed into law the “Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010.” Speaking at Harriet Tubman Elementary School in Washington DC, the President praised the bill as a positive measure to provide better school meals to more students and to regulate those meals to make them more healthful.
The Healthy Hunger-Free Act reauthorizes the federal nutrition program, a $4.5 billion measure that expands free school meals for the needy and increases spending per meal by about 6 cents. After school meals will be expanded in all 50 states. The bill also sets nutritional standards for all food, whether in cafeterias or in school vending machines, and is designed to help fight obesity among children.
In addition, the legislation includes $40 million in funding for a program to buy foods from local farms and to start their own gardens.
Many ESMMSC partners participated in the effort to pass this bill. We encourage you to contact your US legislator and thank them for passing this important bill for our children.