fns

Audrey Rowe, Deputy Administrator for Special Nutrition Programs
School Tours, Las Vegas, Nevada
April 26 and 28, 2010

I had the wonderful opportunity to visit two schools in Las Vegas, Nevada to discuss the upcoming reauthorization of the Child Nutrition Programs.  As Deputy Administrator for the Food and Nutrition Service’s Special Nutrition Programs, one of my top priorities is to improve the nutrition and health of our nation’s children.

By Kevin Concannon, Under Secretary for Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services, USDA

Exploring creative avenues to nourish a nation is a great to start any week.  And that’s exactly what USDA Deputy Secretary Merrigan and I had the opportunity to do this Monday (May 10, 2010) during the first Wholesome Wave Foundation conference in Washington, DC.

Stop by the USDA's People's Garden today from 10 am - 2 pm for Earth Day activities and exhibits:

USDA Under Secretary for Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services Kevin Concannon

On Friday, I had the opportunity to join a celebration of the 5^th anniversary of Riverside Unified School District’s internationally recognized Farmers’ Market Salad Bar Program in Riverside, Cali.  The successful program began as a pilot farm to school salad bar program and today provides healthier options on the menus in the Riverside School District.

Cross-posted from the www.letsmove.gov blogBy Julie Paradis, USDA Food and Nutrition Service Administrator

This week I got a chance to travel to South Carolina and to talk to child nutrition staff from South Carolina as well as surrounding States like Tennessee, Mississippi and North Carolina about how we plan to improve school meals and the overall health of our nation’s children. It was a great group and a productive discussion.

During the school year, the National School Lunch Program serves more than 30.9 million students. What happens when school lets out? In the summer, about 1.4 million of these children eat a school meal in summer school, while over 2 million more enjoy breakfasts, lunches or snacks through the Summer Food Service Program. Some of the nation’s children are going without healthy meals in the summer. Hunger is one of the most severe roadblocks to the learning process. Lack of nutrition during the summer months may set up a cycle for poor performance once school begins again.

On March 19, USDA's Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) Deputy Administrator Lisa Pino traveled to Texas to meet with local leaders and members of the Rio Grande Valley community to talk about how to solve hunger issues in the area. FNS Regional Administrator Bill Ludwig and USDA Director of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships Max Finberg also took part in the discussions.

For some Americans, making ends meet is a struggle even in a strong economy. These households at times have difficulty meeting their food needs and can’t always afford enough food to get them through the month, or the week. During economic downturns, these situations become more common and more serious.

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.

Big plans for small farmers
Warriors in the battle for more local, sustainable food have long been suspicious of the Department of Agriculture and its relationship to large agricultural interests. But even the most dedicated political agrarian has to admit that the USDA is getting local food fever. This week, the top people at the USDA announced they would be handing out almost $65 million to help connect small farmers — especially those using sustainable practices — with people who want to eat local food. The money is part of their new “Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food” campaign which includes a series of programs to help farmers better market their food and the people who run large institutions buy it. (N.Y. Times Diner’s Journal blog, 9/15)