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Obama administration reacts cooly to SNA meeting request

The Obama administration reacted cooly to a request from the School Nutrition Association Thursday for a meeting with Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and First Lady Michelle Obama to discuss their conflicts over the healthier meals rules in the school lunch program.

In a letter, SNA said that its members support most of the healthier meals rules under the 2010 Healthy Hunger Free Kids Act but want a number of changes the group has proposed before including a waiver from the rules for any school that says it has lost money for six months.

A spokeswoman for the first lady referred all calls to USDA.

A USDA spokeswoman said USDA looks forward to meeting again with SNA leaders but did not say who would attend the meeting.

“USDA and SNA have worked together for many years and have met numerous times in recent months,” the spokeswoman said.

“We continue to welcome them to the table to have a constructive conversation about ensuring the food served to children in schools supports their health and academic performance,” she said. “USDA has continued to listen to feedback from schools and provide common-sense flexibilities where needed, while maintaining standards based on the recommendations of experts and pediatricians who continue to support our efforts to improve children's health. We look forward to meeting with SNA leadership soon.”

The spokeswoman also noted that Deputy Undersecretary for Food and Nutrition Services Janey Thornton is scheduled to attend the SNA annual conference in Boston July 13 to 16.

SNA maintains that its members want a number of changes, but some of its members, including 19 former presidents and school nutrition executives in the New York City, Los Angeles and Minneapolis public schools, have publicly objected to SNA’s proposals for rolling back parts of the rule.

SNA Letter to Obama and Vilsack
SNA Comments on Proposed School Meal Standards