Fairfield's Fuel for Learning Partnership (FFLP) Says Pizza Is Not A Vegetable

Pizza is NOT a Vegetable in Fairfield Public Schools

Congress votes for the frozen-food industry – but Fairfield is not biting 

As any parent can attest, getting children to choose healthier foods can be difficult.  Recently, Congress made the job for parents even more difficult by keeping open a loophole that allows pizza to be counted as a vegetable in the school lunch programs.

The Dietary Guidelines for Americans, as well as the Institute of Medicine, both detail the need to increase the amount of vegetables in our diet. In response, the USDA changed the rules of the National School Lunch Program: 2 tablespoons of tomato paste would no longer count as a serving of vegetables.  In fact, they increased the overall amount of vegetables that schools must serve their students.

Unfortunately, the efforts and money of food lobbyists prevailed and Congress overrode the recommendations of health and medical professionals.

Fairfield sticks to more balanced meals

“This decision is a blow to the health of our nation's children,” says Michelle McCabe, Head of the Fuel for Learning Partnership (FFLP), a PTA Council Standing Committee at the Fairfield Public Schools. "Obesity rates among children continue to climb. Nutrition surveys show that few of them are eating anywhere near the recommended amounts of vegetables. What’s more, due to the economic downturn, more children than ever depend on the federal school meals programs to eat."

The good news is that Joann Fitzpatrick, Food and Nutrition Services Manager for the Fairfield Public Schools, has never counted pizza as a vegetable. "I always served a vegetable with our pizza meal.  We encourage the children to take it," she says. "The National School Lunch Program guidelines are there to make sure that students get a well-rounded nutritious meal with protein, grains, fruit, vegetables, and milk.  While pizza has a place on the tray, it's not as a serving of vegetables."

Looming health crisis

The new nutritional guidelines for the National School Lunch Program had not been updated in 15 years.  During that time, obesity rates among children skyrocketed.  Today, one-third of American children are either overweight or obese; the rates of diabetes and other health-related issues are also showing dangerous increases.  With children getting about 40% of their daily calories from school lunches, the improved guidelines are seen as one necessary step to combat the obesity epidemic among children.

Beyond the health impact, school lunch is an educational opportunity, designed to show students what a well-balanced nutritious meal looks like when they pick up a tray.  “Congress in effect is telling them their slice of pizza on the tray is equivalent to a cup of salad.  That’s ridiculous,” says McCabe. “Thankfully, Fairfield students are getting a more accurate message in the cafeteria.”                       

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