A group is lobbying for a more flexible nutrition standards for the school lunch program. If the group succeeds, it could potentially scrap the initiative former First Lady Michelle Obama set up in 2010 in America's schools.
The School Nutrition Association (SNA) is pushing for a change in school lunch menus. The group wants more salt in food choices for students but fewer whole grains, as per New York Post.
The group said Obama's healthier school lunch options had "prescriptive regulations" and foods have been mostly "unappetizing." As a result, some students usually skipped lunches and it didn't matter that Obama's lunch program was healthy because the kids were choosing not to eat.
Adding more salt, on the other hand, will make school lunches more flavorful. The group defended salt shouldn't be immediately be considered unhealthy as there have been recent scientific studies stating otherwise.
As for the move to reduce whole grains, the group said it has more to do with procurement. "Schools are struggling with limited availability of specialty whole-grain items and meeting students' regional and cultural preferences for certain refined grains, such as white rice, pasta, grits, bagels or tortillas," SNA stated in its press release.
The SNA might just succeed with its lobby. North Carolina Rep. Mark Meadows is already looking at repealing Obama's school lunch policy, as per The Washington Examiner.
The Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 initiative called for school lunches with more fruits and vegetables, whole grains, low-fat dairy, low sodium and fat content in the menu. Schools that followed the policy were given additional funding during President Barack Obama's term.
Meadows, however, said some school districts have already chosen to opt out of the program. Meadows also said over 300 regulations regarding school lunch programs have been established in schools since President Donald Trump took office, which has helped ease the burden of funding from the federal government.
