Release No. 438.02

Alisa Harrison (202) 720-4623
Susan Acker (703) 305-2286

DENVER, Oct. 11, 2002 - Officials from the U.S. Department of Agriculture kicked off National School Lunch Week here today during a visit to Meadow Elementary School by highlighting the 28 million children a day who are provided safe, nutritious meals under USDA’s National School Lunch Program.

“USDA nutrition programs touch the lives of one in six Americans every day,” said Agriculture Secretary Ann M. Veneman. “These programs, along with our education efforts, help support President Bush’s Healthier US Initiative by making nutrition education, food safety awareness and obesity prevention top priorities.”

Eric M. Bost, under secretary for food, nutrition and consumer services; Dr. Elsa A. Murano, under secretary for food safety; and William T. Hawks, under secretary for marketing and regulatory programs, spoke to the children about safe food handling and healthy eating habits. Joining the officials were the characters--Power Panther^™, Thermy^™, Fight BAC!^® and Sir 5 A Day--to help educate students about healthy food choices, proper cooking temperatures, the importance of hand washing as well as the importance of exercise and eating plenty of fruits and vegetables.

“National School Lunch Week is a wonderful time for us to highlight the work that USDA agencies do to combat hunger, improve nutrition and ensure food safety,” said Bost. “We are pleased to be here to show how important cooperation is among USDA agencies, state education departments and local school districts. These are issues we can all work on together.”

A growing concern among policy makers is the rise in childhood obesity. During the past 20 years, the percentage of overweight children aged 6 to 11 has nearly doubled and the number of overweight 12- to 19-year-old adolescents has almost tripled.

USDA has spearheaded several initiatives aimed at combating the growing prevalence of overweight and obese children in America. Among current USDA initiatives are the “Eat Smart.Play HardÔ” campaign for schools featuring posters, stickers and brochures encouraging healthy eating and physical exercise; a 48-state nutrition education program for food stamp recipients; an action kit for community organizers titled “Changing the Scene: Improving the School Nutrition Environment;” a $6 million grant to over 100 schools in four states and one Indian Reservation to provide fresh produce during the school day; and an agreement with the National Cancer Institute and The Centers for Disease Control to promote the “5 A Day for Better Health Program,” which encourages fruit and vegetable consumption among Americans.

In addition to nutrition education, USDA also conducts programs to teach kids about safe food handling to avoid illness. USDA has developed many materials targeted toward children and teachers to get the word out about the importance of hand washing, cooking food correctly and properly cleaning surfaces and utensils to avoid food borne illness. The USDA hosts a web page just for kids with information on food safety, nutrition, agriculture and conservation.

The National School Lunch Program, administered by the Food and Nutrition Service, is a federally assisted meal program that operates in over 97,700 public and non-profit private schools and residential childcare institutions. Over 28 million children each school day are served nutritionally balanced, low-cost or free lunches. Since its inception, more than 180 billion lunches have been served. Congress expanded the program in 1998 to include reimbursement for snacks served to children through age 18 in after school educational and enrichment programs.

School districts and independent schools choosing to take part in the program receive both a cash subsidy and commodities from USDA for each of the meals that they serve. The meals they provide must meet federal nutrition standards, and they must be offered free or at reduced prices for children who meet eligibility standards based on family income. In school year 2002, USDA spent over $765 million on school lunch entitlement purchases. Additionally, USDA provided an average of $58 million in bonus commodities to schools in each of the last three school years.

National School Lunch Week runs from Oct. 14 -18. More information about the National School Lunch Program, food safety and nutrition can be found at <http://www.usda.gov/>. Information about President Bush’s Healthier US Initiative and the “5 A Day for Better Health” program can be found at <http://www.whitehouse.gov/infocus/fitness/> and <http://www.5aday.gov/>.

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