A group of senators from potato producing states are working to save the school lunch program from banning or severely limiting spuds in the national school lunch program.Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Mark Udall, D-Colo., have proposed an amendment to the Senate Agriculture Appropriations bill that would protect schools' flexibility in serving healthy fruit and vegetables in the school breakfast and lunch programs.
In January, new guidlines were released from the U.S. Department of Agriculture that would reduce the use of potatoes, including white potatoes, in school lunches, to a total of one cup per week. The rule would also ban starchy vegetables from the School Breakfast Program completely.
The senators amendment would prevent the USDA from moving forward by limiting the options of local school districts.
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Posted 10/18/2011
