Military leaders join Vilsack to oppose school meal changes
May 27, 2014 | 06:16 PM
Retired military leaders who are part of the “Mission: Readiness” organization joined Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack in a telephone call to reporters on Friday to oppose congressional efforts to allow schools exemptions from the healthier meal standards under the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act.
The military leaders have also noted their opposition on their website, and retired Major Gen. Tracy Strevey Jr. wrote an article on the subject in Roll Call on Friday.
In the call, the retired military leaders said the new standards are needed to reduce obesity because being overweight or obese is the No. 1 medical reason why young adults cannot enlist and represents a major threat to national security. An estimated 75 percent of all young Americans between the ages of 17 and 24 are unable to join the military for various reasons including being physically unfit, they said.
Strevey noted that the retired military leaders had fought hard for the passage of the Healthy-Hunger Free Kids Act, and added that reducing the rules would be “terrible news for everyone who expects schools to play a responsible role in supporting children’s health — and it could be a tremendous blow to the strength of our armed services.”
Sam Kass, the executive director of “Let’s Move,” First Lady Michelle Obama’s initiative against childhood obesity, also made the case against the changes proposed in the House bill on MSNBC's Andrea Mitchell Reports last week. Kass said that Republicans are trying to overrule pediatricians and nutritionists.
▪ (Audio) USDA — Hosted media call on nutrition and military readiness
▪ Mission: Readiness — As Congress Debates Fate of Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act, Over 400 Retired Generals and Admirals Urge Vigilance Against Special Interests
▪ Roll Call — National Security Will Suffer With Derailment of School Nutrition Standards
▪ MSNBC — House bill threaten healthy school meals
The military leaders have also noted their opposition on their website, and retired Major Gen. Tracy Strevey Jr. wrote an article on the subject in Roll Call on Friday.
In the call, the retired military leaders said the new standards are needed to reduce obesity because being overweight or obese is the No. 1 medical reason why young adults cannot enlist and represents a major threat to national security. An estimated 75 percent of all young Americans between the ages of 17 and 24 are unable to join the military for various reasons including being physically unfit, they said.
Strevey noted that the retired military leaders had fought hard for the passage of the Healthy-Hunger Free Kids Act, and added that reducing the rules would be “terrible news for everyone who expects schools to play a responsible role in supporting children’s health — and it could be a tremendous blow to the strength of our armed services.”
Sam Kass, the executive director of “Let’s Move,” First Lady Michelle Obama’s initiative against childhood obesity, also made the case against the changes proposed in the House bill on MSNBC's Andrea Mitchell Reports last week. Kass said that Republicans are trying to overrule pediatricians and nutritionists.
▪ (Audio) USDA — Hosted media call on nutrition and military readiness
▪ Mission: Readiness — As Congress Debates Fate of Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act, Over 400 Retired Generals and Admirals Urge Vigilance Against Special Interests
▪ Roll Call — National Security Will Suffer With Derailment of School Nutrition Standards
▪ MSNBC — House bill threaten healthy school meals
