Both the House and Senate Appropriations Agriculture Subcommittees recently approved bills that threaten two critical science-based policies: federal school meals programs and the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, write a scholar and a staff member at TC's Laurie M. Tisch Center for Food, Education, and Policy in the Huffington Post.

"Placing industry concerns above children's health, this Congress is undermining the 2010 bi-partisan Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act by proposing to roll back updated science-based standards for the nutritional content of school meals, specifically limits on sodium and requirements for whole grain-rich foods," write Alison Hard, Tisch Scholar; and Claire Uno, Assistant Executive Director, both at the Tisch Center.

"The bill would also severely limit recommendations made by the Dietary Guidelines for Americans Advisory Committee," Hard and Uno write. "Proposed language in the bill would prevent the inclusion of new research on diet and exercise in the 2015 Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA). It would also stop the Guidelines from mentioning any link between a healthful diet and environmental sustainability, bowing to pressure from food industry players that feel threatened by this stance.
 

"Lawmakers have the evidence to help our citizens eat healthfully and sustainably. Please join us in calling on Congress to maintain science-based policies that are in the interest of all Americans," Hard and Uno conclude.

The Tisch Food Center, housed in the Program in Nutrition at Teachers College, cultivates research about connections between a just, sustainable food system and healthy eating, and translates it into recommendations and resources for educators, policy makers, and community advocates. The Center focuses on schools as critical levers for learning and social change.

Initiated in 2006 as the Center for Food & Environment, in 2013 the Center was renamed to recognize a generous gift from the Laurie M. Tisch Illumination Fund as part of the Fund’s Healthy Food & Community Change initiative, and to highlight the Center’s new focus on policy. Tisch Food Center staff and students are active in local and national food policy coalitions that work towards stronger food systems. The Center also weighs in on legislative issues aligned with its mission.

LINK: 10 Reasons Congress Should Stop Playing Politics With Science and Our Health (Huffington Post)