a look at the new healthy hunger-free kids act

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Kind Lifer Karen wrote to me earlier in the year to express her excitement about Congress passing the child nutrition bill so I thought I'd give you all an update! On December 13 2010 President Obama signed Congress's Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act a child nutrition bill that will make healthy meals more affordable for schools and therefore more available to kids.

Let's take a look at what this bill means for our nation's school children! The Huffington Post breaks down eleven tenets of the Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act and I'll summarize them here special thanks to PCRM's Kristin Adair for her feedback!:

Schools who best meet the nutrition standards outlined in this bill will receive increased federal reimbursement for school meals. Translation: healthier lunches for kids equals more money for schools.
The USDA will be required to update their nutrition standards for meals and snacks in schools so they are consistent with the U.S. Dietary Guidelines and recommendations from the Institute of Medicine that encourage more fruits veggies and whole grains in school meals - which is great news! Nutritionists and experts will consult with the USDA to make sure these standards are as healthy as possible.
Federal funds will be allocated for school gardens and farm-to-school programs in which schools partner with local farms to provide nutritious local food for meals. This is huge!!
The USDA can now regulate what kinds of processed foods are sold in schools. Hopefully this is the beginning of the end of the junk food industry's pervasive presence in many schools today.
Schools in areas with high poverty will receive money from the government for providing free meals to students. This is so important for students who do not have access to healthy foods at home.
Funding will be provided to state and local organizations that promote fitness and nutrition education. By laying the foundation for a lifelong healthy lifestyle these organizations will work with experts and education professionals to fight childhood obesity.
Water must be available free of charge during school meals. Can you believe this wasn't the case before??? I hope the water that will now be provided isn't in plastic bottles - and I hope it's filtered water. Wouldn't it be nice if they just had a jug of filtered water on each lunch table?
Funding will be allocated to research projects aimed at ending hunger and examining the causes and consequences of it.
The USDA and Health and Human Services will create programs to promote healthy eating and the reduction of childhood obesity using the principles of behavioral economics research.
Good nutrition starts with breastfeeding! State agencies that demonstrate increased rates of breastfeeding for newborn children will be rewarded and funds will be made available for the purchase of breast pumps.
Foster children will automatically be eligible for free meals without having to demonstrate their income.

You can read the full text of the bill here and you can read the White House fact sheet about the bill here. I kind of can't believe this got passed - I sooo hope it is put into action! What a wonderful effort on President Obama's part and all who fought for and created this bill.

What else can we do to improve children's nutrition inside and outside of our nation's schools?