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Let's Help the Schools Make Better Food Choices for our Kids
February 11, 2009
Let's Help the Schools Make Better Food Choices for our Kids
Farmers' Markets
DENISE MILLER
For the Journal
Mornings are hectic at my house. The kids are eating breakfast, coffee is brewing, my middle-school daughter is preparing her lunch, and I'm usually tripping over someone to make lunch for the boys.
My kids rarely buy lunch, so I am lucky enough to know most of what they will eat each day. Lunches aren't fancy -- lots of peanut butter, local raspberry jam, whole grain bread, sliced turkey, carrots, apples and dinner leftovers.
But in New Mexico, where 218,000 children are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, sending a brown bag isn't always an option, according to the fiscal impact statement for the Senate bill SB107 seeking $1.44 million for more produce for school lunches.
The challenge for school food-service directors is to provide a balanced meal when, after expenses, they are left with $1 per meal, and 30 cents of that is spent on milk, according to the fiscal report on SB107.
New Mexico, like most other states, doesn't spend a penny on school lunch, according to Mary Ann McCann, school nutrition coordinator for Taos Municipal Schools, and Corrine Lovato, retired state director of school nutrition. State budget allocations only assist with school breakfast.
In 2007, $85,000 was set aside under the Valley Cluster program to give 6,000 Albuquerque Public Schools students two more servings of fruits and vegetables -- locally grown when available.
Eight school districts are serving New Mexico-grown produce to 165,000 children statewide, according to the fiscal impact report for a bill before the House of Representatives to fund an increase in the amount of state produce in schools.
The proposed program would more than double that existing fruit and vegetable provision.
Mind-numbing statistics about obesity in today's youths and the related health risks of diabetes and heart disease are easy to find. More fruits and vegetables can help combat the potential health epidemic our country may face.
Worried about our cash-strapped economy? Remember the current economic costs of health care related to obesity and diabetes in New Mexico are estimated to be $324 million and $876 million, respectively, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the American Diabetes Association.
Rep. Rhonda King, D-Santa Fe, introduced HB386 seeking $3.3 million to buy New Mexico grown fruits and vegetables for school lunches. A second, similar House bill also has been introduced.
Sen. Pete Campos, D-Las Vegas, is sponsoring a similar bill, SB107, seeking $1.44 million.
An interim committee of Health and Human Services has designated the issue a priority. The New Mexico Department of Agriculture has supported farm-to-school programs for years.
We all know it's going to be a tough year or two at the Legislature.
But when it comes to the health of our kids and our economy, perhaps the real question is whether we can afford not to fund the bill.
So here's a recipe for a healthy school lunch:
- One dedicated cadre of school food-service personnel;
- One committed partner at the New Mexico Department of Agriculture;
- One large helping of New Mexico farmers eager to have their produce consumed by school kids;
- An informed , vocal public that tells legislators they want them to support the bills to add New Mexico produce to school lunches;
- A passing vote on the bills at the Legislature and the governor's signature.
We have most ingredients. With everyone's support, we will have all of them. The value of this recipe is priceless.
Scope, impacts of poor nutrition
- Only 25 percent of children ages 2 to 11 consume even three servings of fruits and vegetables a day.
- A diet poor in fresh fruits and vegetables increases the risk of heart disease, cancer and obesity.
- For kids born in the U.S., the risk of being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes is 30 percent for boys, 40 percent for girls, and even higher for Native American children.
- About 63 percent of students in New Mexico school-lunch programs come from low income households.
N.M. school lunch facts
- Federal reimbursement rate is $2.57 for free lunches, $2.07 for reduced-price lunches and 24 cents for paid lunches.
- The cost to prepare a school meal is about $3.07, excluding a fresh fruit or vegetable serving.
N.M. Farm to School
A 2007 survey by the nonprofit Farm to Table found: Of 150 farmers who completed surveys, 96 indicated an interest in selling to local schools and institutions. Of the 60 school food service directors who responded, 50 indicated they would buy from New Mexico farmers. They represent 370 schools and 185,493 students, equaling 53 percent of New Mexico's 348,820 K-12 students.
-- Sources include N.M. Department of Health's 2005 Youth Risk and Resiliency Survey; Center for Communications, Health, and the Environment; Indian Health Service division of U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; fiscal impact report for House Bill 383 to fund more produce in school lunches; and the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food and Nutrition Service; Mary Ann McCann of Taos Municipal Schools
