Supporting National Farm To School Month

Floor Speech

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Mr. HOLT. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlelady from Hawaii.

I rise in support of House Resolution 1655 that I introduced to establish October as National Farm to School Month. I want to thank the leading cosponsor, Representative Betty McCollum of Minnesota, and Chairman Miller for their help in bringing this to the floor today.

It should not be a surprise that I, as a representative of the Garden State, support bringing Jersey tomatoes and sweet corn into schools. But this is not just a local or provincial resolution. Farm to School programs are a key priority for Agriculture Secretary Vilsack, and First Lady Michelle Obama has planted a garden at the White House with the help of local students to symbolize the good nutrition that comes from fresh foods as well as to educate students about where food comes from.

Farm to School programs can help in the fight against childhood obesity and economically support our local farmers. These programs also help address the troubling rate of childhood obesity. Currently, there are 31 million children who eat school meals 5 days a week, 180 days a year. While the National School Lunch

Program does a good job feeding these children, the program has the potential to provide fresher and more healthful foods to millions of children in the United States. Farm to School programs fight obesity by increasing children's daily intake of fresh fruits and vegetables. Farm to School programs also benefit small- and mid-sized agricultural producers by providing access to consistent markets, and they're a great stimulus for the local economy. For every dollar spent on local foods in schools, several dollars circulate in the local economy.

While there are presently more than 10,000 Farm to School programs operational in all 50 States, it is but a fraction of the 94,000 public and nonprofit private schools that are operating the National School Lunch Program. Establishing October as National Farm to School Month would increase awareness and provide the recognition that the existing programs have earned.

Farm to School programs exemplify the best use of Federal school lunch dollars, and I am pleased that this legislation that I wrote to provide $40 million in mandatory funding for Farm to School competitive grants is included in the pending reauthorization of the Child Nutrition Act on which we will vote soon.

I would like to take a moment to thank Megan Lott at the Community Food Security Coalition and Beth Feehan, the director of the New Jersey Farm to School Network, for their efforts in support of this resolution. I urge my colleagues to support this resolution and to join us in helping to spread and strengthen Farm to School programs across the country.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source