food and nutrition

USDA Under Secretary for Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services Kevin Concannon joined elementary school students in Bellville, Texas to award their schools “Gold” in USDA’s HealthierUS School Challenge for their outstanding achievements in improving their school nutrition environments.  Their schools, West End Elementary and O’Bryant Primary School along with O’Bryant Intermediate School, which earned gold last year, are Bellville’s three elementary schools and now all HealthierUS Schools.

This week, we celebrate National School Lunch Week to highlight a program paramount to improving the health and well being our Nation’s children. And it’s an effort receiving this important recognition for good reason…

Secretary Vilsack stopped in Knoxville, Iowa, at a Healthier US School Challenge Gold Award school on Monday of National School Lunch Week for a roundtable discussion with school administrators, local, state and federal nutrition program staff, teachers, parents and students representing three schools in the district about improving nutrition in schools and the upcoming Child Nutrition Reauthorization efforts.

The Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food initiative kickoff week culminated at the annual meeting of the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture.  I asked these state leaders to join me in promoting local and regional food systems.  I shared with them a video clip of my conversation with Dave Lane, Deputy Secretary of Agriculture in the Green Mountain State (Vermont).  I asked Dave for his insights as to how state governments can help.  Watch the video here:

There were many moving parts in the week-long launch of the USDA-wide initiative Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food (KYF2). In this, my first blog entry, I review the week’s events. It was, in short, a whirlwind.

In Gering, Nebraska (pop.8000 ) over the Oregon Trail Park, right next to the high school football field lies the Ever Green House. A project of Community Action Partnership of Western Nebraska, the Ever Green House is a family and community development center featuring a community garden, a greenhouse, and a farmer’s market. With a mission of building community through gardening, horticultural education, community beautification and environmental stewardship, the mission encompasses many of the goals that the USDA is promoting.

Last week USDA brought you a series of events and announcements to roll out the Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food initiative (KYF2). Today, we’re excited to bring it all together with a new Website for consumers and producers.

Do you want to make healthier food choices, but aren’t sure where to start?

USDA has three new on-line tools and sites that can get you going:

On Monday, September 14, Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack had the opportunity to meet with 25 leaders of the Jewish community in America including representatives from the Orthodox, Conservative, Reconstructionist and Reform traditions, as well as national service organizations. The meeting was a wonderful occasion for the Secretary to further President Obama’s efforts to promote interfaith dialogue and cooperation.

On an early fall day when the rain refused to pass farmers and producers from the DC-metropolitan region gathered for the opening of the FRESHFARM Market by the White House on Vermont Ave. Federal employees, area workers and out-of-town visitors gathered for the festivities despite the weather and were excited for the new program.