In reaction to the merger, the Tisch Food Center prepared a model comment. The comment called on USDA to ensure that CNPP has qualified leadership, robust authority, and sustained financial support to effectively and efficiently carry out its responsibilities.
Why does this change matter?
- CNPP plays an outsized role in ALL of the federal food assistance and nutrition education programs. On the policy side, through the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, standards for nutrition programs are based on the highest quality evidence. On the consumer-facing side, MyPlate and other nutrition education tools are the most trusted and widely-used resources for helping ALL Americans navigate how to eat healthfully.
- CNPP's work is based on the best available science and this needs to be protected. If CNPP is going to be based at FNS it must be protected from potential conflicts of interest and have it's scientific integrity protected. Given the current administration's willingness to put non-scientists in roles that require scientific credentials, we are very concerned that this could happen with CNPP, leaving the DGAs and other nutrition guidance vulnerable to non-scientific influence.