I've eaten school lunches when I go have lunch with my daughters. They are gross and the amount of food being untouched and thrown away is crazy. It's a waste of money. I enjoyed lunches when I was in school. 

Why do we need the federal government to determine what our kids eat?  It doesn't take a village, it doesn't take Big Brother Government, it takes parents who decide on their children's diet.  My mom used to make lunch for my brothers and I and it was nutritious.

Why the federal government thinks it should mandate food is beyond me.

Why the federal government thinks it should mandate food is beyond me.

Maybe because the government never did.....It gave the schools guidelines regarding what foods to serve emphasizing more healthy and nutritious foods. It was basically up to the schools to implement a healthy menu. Unfortunately with cuts to education, some schools found it very hard to serve nutritious tasty meals with such small budgets.

When I was in school as a kid, the hot meals were nutritious and balanced.  Not always delicious, but they had a real menu and that was the meal, not a bunch of optional stuff.

Unfortunately with cuts to education, some schools found it very hard to serve nutritious tasty meals with such small budgets.

What cuts? It doesn't take a large amount of money to create something the kids will eat.

Determine no, but a lot of kids have few if any options and they look like the butterballs their parents are. Round is a shape, but congestive heart failure in your twenties is not funny and a lot of these kids are well on their way.

Effective July 1, after a period for public comment, schools will again be allowed to serve chocolate milk to students thanks to the lifting of some restrictions.

The USDA announced that it is also easing restrictions on sodium content, and allowing milk with one percent fat to be served in schools again.

Sure they did it for the kids! More like dairy producers have been lobbying for years to get back into schools because in the past they have been their biggest consumers of flavored and one percent fat milk products! All Trump did was just toss another fat check into some corporation's pocket!

Snack and soda vending machines are only in our high schools here. 

Macaroni and cheese; mashed potatoes; grilled cheese sandwiches are foods that get a student through the rest of the day.  It's a long time between breakfast and lunch and, then, when school is out the bus ride back home.  Students get a lot of exercise during the day. 

It isn't always what food one eats, but how much. 

Exactly the point I was trying to make. For some children, school lunch is their only meal. Kids can't learn if they are hungry. Our elementary and middle schools do "extras", which could be a cookie, ice cream, chips etc. They have to pay extra for those. If  the kids are getting an extra and not eating their hot lunch, then they aren't getting any nutrition anyway.

And, that's it in a nutshell......students can't learn if they are hungry!

My two oldest girls take their lunch everyday. My youngest daughter takes hers about 2-3 times a week because she has her favorites at school sometimes, like omelet day or cheese stuffed breadsticks day (I know, super nutritious LOL), or nacho day.

" School lunches have always been a money losing enterprise."

I'm not even going to touch that statement.  Bad fishy. 

Because a lot of children would have no lunch.

My grandchildren's parents pay for their lunches at school.  I paid for my boys' lunches at school even though most of the time I made their lunches.

All parents are not created equally. 

Because a lot of children would have no lunch.

Yup.  For a lot of kids, those school breakfasts and lunches are the only meals they'll get.

All the more reason they should be healthy - these kids' diets at home are probably deficient in quite a few vitamins and minerals.  Even if they're eating at home, they're likely not eating well.

As far as getting them through the day, the school system where I grew up allows unlimited servings of veggies, because some, especially student athletes, complained of being hungry before school let out.  There are solutions that work with the guidelines - we just need to implement them.  But that school system actually listened to parents and kids, and came up with a workable solution instead of just shutting them down.

Such a great idea about more helpings.

I thought so, too.

Red states prove that every day.

idiotic comment.

Translation:  "don't have a good comeback for that one."

I feel bad you can't understand.

Awww, really?   

Truth hurts check the stats on the welfare states, blues support red takes, educated comment. suck it up! 

Why not get rid of school lunch entirely and make it the responsibility of the parent to send lunch with their child to school? 

So what happens to the families who are barely providing ONE meal a day for their children? What's the solution then? Let the poor and unfortunate kids go hungry until they get home? Or just not send them to school until the parents have enough money to buy more food?

School lunches have always been a money losing enterprise.

When has it ever been designed as a money making enterprise?!

I agree with this. I also don't understand why they dropped the 1%milk at schools, that's lower fat. A lot of elementary school kids should really still be drinking whole or 2% milk. The fat in the milk is good for their growing brains. If I'm missing something please let me know about the milk thing.

A lot of elementary school kids should really still be drinking whole or 2% milk. The fat in the milk is good for their growing brains.

Unless things have dramatically changed since my children were young, pediatricians were fine with children drinking 2% milk after age 2. They didn't need to go to a lower percentage.

I don't know about milk helping human brains, but I do know that calcium and Vitamin D are vital to the health of our bones, teeth, and hair.

The key is for children to be physically active, eat healthful homemade real food (not packaged/processed) meals, and not be allowed to be couch potatoes. This is what it seems too many of today's parents ignore.

I think I was responding because someone earlier stated or complained that 1% milk was back due to dairy lobbyist. Oh! And chocolate milk(1%) was coming back

Chocolate milk comes from brown cows!

Thank you for the explanation .  I think I was told after formula or breast milk to keep them on whole milk because of the milk fat, it was good for their brains. After a certain age then 2% was fine. Of course, my oldest girl is now 17 but the baby is a little small for her age so I try to keep 2% in the house instead of 1%. I call her the baby, but she's 11 LOL 

Yeah a video game will wear you out!

Reading some of the comments has made me laugh, because the pro-Michelle tofu crowd has repeatedly brought up the same ridiculous talking points for years:

• Fresh food is more expensive than processed or fast food. FALSE.
• Kids loved Michelle Obama's guidelines. FALSE.
• Students who didn't eat the school food are spoiled brats. FALSE.
• It takes a lot of time to prepare and cook fresh, wholesome meals. FALSE.

Don't worry, Michelle-folks. A little more sodium and some fake chocolate in 1% milk isn't going to make a dent in childhood obesity. During all of Michelle's years, childhood obesity didn't go down because of her tofu lunches, so a minor increase in sodium won't matter. If you're worried about your kids, send them to school with a delicious a tofu and kale salad (no dressing).

What today's  kids need is more physical activity and parental guidance ... not tofu, kale, and the US government.

Run inside kids and enjoy your moon pie lunch, there exercise and nutrition at the same time. trumpism in action.

Run inside kids and enjoy your moon pie lunch, there exercise and nutrition at the same time.

I had to look up what a moon pie is. It looks disgusting and very fattening. Have you ever thought that many parents give their children fresh fruits and vegetables for snacks? That's what my wife and I gave our children when they were in school. What they eat now that they're adults is their own responsibility.

trumpism in action.

What a judgemental and ridiculous comment.

Fresh food is more expensive than processed or fast food. FALSE.

Really? Which costs more a can of corn or an ear of corn, canned green beans or bushel of fresh green beans? Canned peaches or fresh peaches? Ground beef or processed hamburger patties?

Kids loved Michelle Obama's guidelines. FALSE.

Who claimed that?.......

Students who didn't eat the school food are spoiled brats. FALSE.

Why aren't they? Would you have accepted your child throwing away perfectly good food just because they don't like it? And if you did accept it did you let them complain about being hungry after they did?

It takes a lot of time to prepare and cook fresh, wholesome meals. FALSE

Once again who claimed that?

If Melania Trump advocated mandatory healthy lunches for schoolkids the Trumpsters would be all for it.

The opposition was always based on hatred of Michelle Obama, aka , generally speaking, racism.

The insane attacks on Michelle Obama were the best evidence of the irrational and personal hatred the right wing scum had/have for the Obamas.  NO first lady ever got attacked the way she did, who attacks the President's wife like that even if they think the president himself is horrible?  I don't remember any left wingers calling Barbara Bush fat and ugly.  

The treatment of the Obamas followed by the election of Trump has proved that the civil rights movement did little to change hearts.  Those who would have denied those rights are angry and bitter to this day that they were granted.

If Melania Trump advocated mandatory healthy lunches for schoolkids the Trumpsters would be all for it.

Melania Trump has never appeared  to be a woman who would want the US government to "mandate" what American children eat in school, but your comment is quite a funny fantasy.  

The opposition was always based on hatred of Michelle Obama, aka , generally speaking, racism.

Oooo ... the hate and race cards rise again. Bravo!! The more people use them, the less value they have when real hatred and racism appear.

It is a shame before God that the children of God can be so petty, small, and given to negativity.  Woe, to those men and women-whomever they be-who speak evil of good.

"Obama’s school lunches were arguably some of the most vile, disgusting things ever known to man, and thankfully the Trump administration is working on getting rid of them." 

This is hyperbole and unworthy of publication. Why demonize food?

America Tops List of 10 Most Obese Countries

The obesity epidemic continues to plague not only America, but the rest of the world as well.

By Amir Khan , Staff Writer|May 28, 2014, at 7:00 p.m.

Just a thought:

Obesity in America is not going to be solved via school lunches that taste like cardboard!  Or by providing pizza for school lunch.

Want to find a solution to childhood obesity - start educating young people on how to make menus, how to shop and then how to cook.  Food is expensive, I get that - yet it also takes a bit of initiative to make a good meal that does not have to cost a lot... opening a box is easier, but not necessarily cheaper and most likely not good for you.

A frozen bag of mixed veggies, a cheap cut of beef, pork or chicken, noodles/potatoes and broth/gravy mix ... I can make a nice hearty stew very inexpensively.

P.s.. my baby is now 17 ... I get up early enough every morning to toast him a bagel/peanut butter and/or jelly toast for breakfast .. also make him a lunch every morning.  As adults and parents, it is 'we' that should be providing the lessons at home!

P.s... he can do it all by himself - I have taught him how to shop.. cook and handle money ... I enjoy preparing things for my family .. he will be off to college soon - cannot pamper him there!

Done preaching now!

What I am seeing in my part of the Country are obese women.  Not school children and men, but women.  Don't know why!

Magnoliaave, the former First Lady "spoke" to the issues of obesity in all quarters of the nation, not just a specific locale. As will similarly be the case in whatever it is the current First Lady Melania Trump decides is her national cause.

whatever it is Melania Trump decides is her national cause.

It's supposed to be bullying and, yes, the paradox there is suffocatingly obvious. 

It's supposed to be bullying and, yes, the paradox there is suffocatingly obvious.

And cyber-bullying. Given the fact that too many children have committed suicide due to bullying and cyber-bullying that their schools ignored for over a decade, I feel that these are very relevant topics for the 21st century and worthy of a First Lady's attention.  

By the way -- Except for photo ops where she appeared with select children, Michelle Obama's White House garden was taken care of by the National Parks Service. Or, do you think she went out there early every morning to pull weeds and do the watering? Also, her daughters weren't subjected to the same crappy food she advocated for poor and middle class children. They had gourmet menus and snacks while other kids were told to eat tofu and kale or go hungry.

I'll never forget the news stories about very little children whose healthy lunches (baked turkey on whole wheat bread, apple, real fruit juice) from home were taken away from them and they were given a couple of fried chicken nuggets instead.

Yes.  Now that's royally rich.

I'll never forget the news stories about very little children whose healthy lunches (baked turkey on whole wheat bread, apple, real fruit juice) from home were taken away from them and they were given a couple of fried chicken nuggets instead.

Apparently there's a lot of that kind of BS which never happened that you'll  never forget.  Thanks for dumping your Breitbart filth Jasper.  Now someone's got to clean up your stinking mess.

Some of those kids never grow out of bullying as we see here every day

Apparently there's a lot of that kind of BS which never happened that you'll  never forget.  Thanks for dumping your Breitbart filth Jasper.  Now someone's got to clean up your stinking mess.

Such a hateful and hostile comment, Atheist. Here are 3 of many articles, and none of them are Breitbart or remotely right wing. You should do some research before personally attacking people.

ABC News ...

abc7

NPR ...

npr

Carolina Journal ...

carolinajournal

Last, but not least ... "right wing" NYT ...

“I lost a million dollars that first year the regulations took place,” said Betti Wiggins, executive director of Detroit Public Schools’ Office of Nutrition. Now, thanks to C.E.P. as well as eliminating choices of entrees in lower grades and cycling her menus more often (12 days versus 20 days) to control inventory, her department is back in the black. And kids are starting to come around to reformulated entrees like three-bean vegetarian chili with cornbread and low-fat breaded chicken patties.

“This is an obesity crisis,’’ she said, “and we’ve gotten rid of health classes and P.E., so we’re back to the lunch lady and the tray.”

BUT many experts in taste preferences say starting at school age may be too late. Research indicates that the critical period for broadening the palate is the   first two years . “It’s harder to change preferences than to form them,” said Leann Birch, a development psychologist at the University of Georgia in Athens. “The reality is kids learn to eat what their parents eat, and if kids are getting something different at school, then it’s not surprising they aren’t eating it.”

nytimes

Thanks so much for those links which happen to prove that your comment that lunches "were taken away from them" was false so that must have come from some rightwing scum site (or did you make it up yourself?).  Also the lunch you described as what the mother sent was really a school lunch--did you not see the tray it was in. Your first link just indicates that the oreos were sent home, not confiscated but sent home. So, again, thanks for not even reading (or being unable to understand your own links) and then handing them to me to debunk the lies. 

wow...good job, Atheist!

Thanks for the cherry-picking what you want to see instead of what was really there. 

If this was Mrs. Obama's proudest moment, I am very sad.  She doesn't get another opportunity.  Perhaps, she should have tried it out first on her children.

Mrs. Obama has nothing to apologize for anyway. Either the nation can appreciate her efforts to help out or just leave first ladies out of the own scheme of running the country from now on. I do not see state governor spouses having "obligatory" causes foisted or hoisted, as the case may be, upon them! What is this critical spirit?

Hey, maybe Melania can show kids how to poll dance or put on a condom... Much better than eating healthy.. [eye roll]

If this was Mrs. Obama's proudest moment, I am very sad.  She doesn't get another opportunity.  Perhaps, she should have tried it out first on her children.

You're not "very sad."  You're not sad at all.  If anything you apparently take pleasure trying to tear down someone who's your superior in every way.  Just what peculiar branch of "Christianity" do you follow?

Perhaps, she should have tried it out first on her children.

Come one.  When has a politician EVER made themselves subject to what clusterfucks they push on the rest of the country.  They did it with the ACA, why should this be any different?

Who even mentioned she owed an apology?

I have causes.  I formed a foundation for special needs children in my County.  No big hoopla for anyone other than me and those who joined in fund raising. 

If first ladies whether they are national, statewide, local or whatever don't have the heart to do It, then, they shouldn't.  There are those of us who don't do it for recognition.

Usually, these ladies who have husbands who are politically or socially  connected already have a charity/project that they are already supporting. 

You are complaining, if only around the edges. Conservatives, enough. Mrs. Obama has the heart for helping this nation's kids:

Michelle Obama has a message for President Donald Trump: If you want to undo the Obama administration's healthy eating agenda, get ready for a fight.

"We’ve got to make sure we don’t let anybody take us back," the former first lady said Friday at the annual Partnership for a Healthier America Summit, her first public appearance in Washington since leaving office.

"Every elected official on this planet should understand," Obama said, her voice rising with indignation as she urged moms to make their voices heard. "Don’t play with our children. Don’t do it."

Obama, who remains popular with the public, did not mention Trump by name but railed against the new administration's moves to roll back some of the nutrition policies she championed in the White House — from school meals to calorie labels. She left no doubt she will publicly rebuke any attempt to wipe out her work on childhood obesity.

"If we really want to make this country great, then our kids need to be healthy and they need to have access to the best," she said. "Not just some of them, but all of them."

Obama's comments came days after the Trump administration announced it will relax some of the school nutrition standards that are a central part of her Let's Move! campaign to combat childhood obesity. She discussed her work on children's health for nearly an hour during an onstage Q&A, where she was noticeably more relaxed and candid compared to speeches she delivered at the summit during her husband's presidency.

But while she seemed more at ease, her fierce responses underscored the threat posed to her legacy — something she said she views not through a political lens but, rather, as a mother.

“My commitment to these issues is real,” she said. “When you hear me getting riled up in this chair, it’s not politics — it’s parenting that's really moving me.”

Just last week, the administration announced it is staving off Obama-era sodium limits for school meals that were set to become more strict in coming years. The administration is also giving schools a little more leeway on requirements she had championed to serve whole grains — modest changes that were widely seen as an assault on the Obamas' food priorities.

The Department of Agriculture declined to comment on the criticism, other than to say that Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue "has great respect for the former first lady."

The Trump administration also last week delayed an Obama-era rule requiring restaurants, grocery stores and movie theaters to post calorie counts on their menus, a vestige of the Affordable Care Act that has been delayed numerous times over the past seven years due to complaints from convenience stores and pizza chains, among other interests. Trump's FDA pulled the plug on the labeling deadline four days short of its effective date, leaving companies in the lurch after many had already invested time and resources to meet the requirements.

People have a right to greater disclosure of things like calories and added sugars in what they are eating, Obama said, once again questioning the partisanship over the issue.

" This just isn’t that complicated, you know?” she said, laughing incredulously. “Just tell me what’s in my food. Why is there a problem?”

“'Keep families ignorant,' that’s all I’m hearing,” she said. "You don't know what's in your food. You can't handle that, mom."

"Consumers out there," she added, "I don't care where you're from, or what your party is; I would be highly insulted."

The Trump administration has said it's aiming to make the menu labeling rule more flexible for businesses, a process that could take years.

With the Obamas now in planning mode and laying the groundwork for their post-White House work, the former first lady reiterated she’s not going to retreat from her passionate advocacy on food and nutrition issues. “We’re not gone,” Obama said. “We’re just breathing, y'all.”

While public health advocates worry the Trump administration will go further to attempt to demolish Obama’s legacy of policies that promote healthier eating — from updated Nutrition Facts labels to a ban on trans fats and moves to dial down sodium in processed foods — there’s still momentum in the private sector for those initiatives.

The Partnership for a Healthier America, a nonprofit that launched during former President Barack Obama’s first term to help support the Let’s Move! campaign, announced 30 new corporate partnerships this week. Major candy makers — representing nearly half of the domestic market — pledged to sell smaller packs, while convenience store chains that serve 160 million people each day committed to stepping up efforts to offer healthier options in corner stores and gas stations. . . . .

Beyond private-sector commitments, Michelle Obama’s allies hope the cultural impact of her White House initiatives will continue to drive change. The White House vegetable garden remains a symbol on the South Lawn, though the Trump administration has not publicized it as Obama did. The former first lady's supporters are working on a multimillion-dollar campaign aimed at making fruits and vegetables "cool," and they note that consumers are demanding healthier foods at restaurants and grocery stores across the country.

politico

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

"You have to stop and think: Why don't we want kids to have good food at schools? What is wrong with you?" Obama said, to boisterous applause. "Why would that be political?" — Michelle Obama, 2017

A lot of other people have heart, also.

Then we should join forces on this one. Why break each others hearts? Michelle Obama loves children, for she believes they are made in the image of God. Let's agree on this, my dear lady!

Geesh, you would think Michelle Obama was associated with a MTV anti-smoking campaign:

Photo removed due to TOS.. no nudity. [ph]

Bare arms = bad.. Flashing vag and boobs = good. So glad I am not a Christian. 

Please, do not blame Christianity for the double-standard that is an aging Pat Robertson.

Please, do not blame Christianity for the double-standard that is an aging Pat Robertson.

Apologies, i forgot...

Who expected anything different. Trumpanzees cannot create or build, they can only destroy. Not to worry, as soon as we get back control, we will merely rebuild everything that Trump has destroyed, and America will actually become great again.

Obama’s school lunches were arguably some of the most vile, disgusting things ever known to man...

This is Amurica, we can’t have uppity black folk making healthy policy.  We need obese children to fill in the ranks of those morbidly obese slobs who kick the bucket, and keep the disease management machine humming.

I’m at a resort as I write this, overlooking the pool area crammed with some of the most unhealthy looking people imaginable.  Yesterday my family packed a lunch to eat at a major theme park.  We had sandwiches, snap peas, hummus, apple slices, and a small bag of chips.  It was delicious, reasonably healthy, and the exact opposite of the kind of school lunches conservatives are clamoring for.