Anonymous wrote:While I agree that what is served in school cafeterias is mostly crap, are people willing to pay higher taxes to support that 40% of children on free or reduced priced lunches and breakfasts? My son qualifies for the program but I opt out of it knowing he will be served this crap. I don't expect other people to feed my child. He is my responsibility. I think it is great that these programs exist but I think people, esp in today's economy wouldn't be willing to put their money where their mouth is.

Yup, I'd pay more if necessary. I don't think your kid is just your responsibility -- he'll be my daughter's friend, colleague, or doctor or whatever some day, and I'd like to contribute to that. My pennies plus more pennies from others = good for everyone.

Anonymous wrote:Some of the respondents on here make me ill with their exhortation to just make your own kid's lunch. How nice for all of us who have those resources, both in terms of time and money. But the content of school lunch (and breakfast and snack) is a HUGE issue (in all senses) for lower-income Americans. And that's not a small proportion of children.

In 2008 41 percent of students nationally were enrolled in free and reduced school lunch. School is where many of these children get the best, most complete meals they eat each day. Serving sugary crap and empty calories to these kids is just wrong. And a waste of my money. There has been a lot of effort to improve school food and hopefully this movement is will continue to gain momentum.

And BTW, my daughter's school serves only skim and low-fat regular milk.

Former poster who mentioned packing lunches...

I realize it's a big issue. However, change isn't going to happen overnight. Until it does if you have the resources pack a lunch - it can be as simple as packing leftovers in a Thermos.

We pack lunches for a different reason - we really have no choice due to food intolerances.

Anonymous wrote:How about you regulate what YOUR kid does instead of trying to regulate what everyone else does.

You don't want your kid to have strawberry milk- great. Make it a rule and enforce it.

So true! I pack lunch but the kids buy milk everyday. I had started off the year telling them they were only allowed to purchase regular milk. Later one told me she had been buying chocolate milk everyday and the other child was buying strawberry. Instead of having them sneak it we struck a deal and they are only allowed to buy flavored milk every other day.

While I agree that what is served in school cafeterias is mostly crap, are people willing to pay higher taxes to support that 40% of children on free or reduced priced lunches and breakfasts? My son qualifies for the program but I opt out of it knowing he will be served this crap. I don't expect other people to feed my child. He is my responsibility. I think it is great that these programs exist but I think people, esp in today's economy wouldn't be willing to put their money where their mouth is.

Some of the respondents on here make me ill with their exhortation to just make your own kid's lunch. How nice for all of us who have those resources, both in terms of time and money. But the content of school lunch (and breakfast and snack) is a HUGE issue (in all senses) for lower-income Americans. And that's not a small proportion of children.

In 2008 41 percent of students nationally were enrolled in free and reduced school lunch. School is where many of these children get the best, most complete meals they eat each day. Serving sugary crap and empty calories to these kids is just wrong. And a waste of my money. There has been a lot of effort to improve school food and hopefully this movement is will continue to gain momentum.

And BTW, my daughter's school serves only skim and low-fat regular milk.

OP, there are alot of parents and groups that are active on this issue, in Montgomery County and beyond. Please look into this and add your voice! We need more parents like you to keep speaking out about this. The school districts will continue pleading ignorance, lack of funding, lack of facilities to prepare decent meals, "the kids won't eat it," etc etc , until enough parents make noise about this.

As one poster mentioned, DC Parents for Better School Lunch Choice is a good place to start.

OP here. Thanks for website recommendations, I will investigate those further.

I do pack his lunch everyday, but had been letting him get milk for a variety of reasons; I didn’t realize he was drinking strawberry milk everyday (13:53 I get off my lazy bum at 5:30 am to get myself ready for work, DS and his 3 yr old sister dressed, fed, lunches packed and out the door - by myself as my husband leaves at 5:15 am, but thanks for your advice).

As some PPs have noted this is a broader issue. Yes, on a micro level (him) it isn't the end of the world b/c we eat pretty healthily, he is active/involved in sports and we have talked about strawberry milk not being a great choice...but on a macro level it is shocking that a school - public or otherwise- would provide what is basically an artificial sugar drink to small children – how is this good policy? what if kindergarteners were allowed to purchase a 16 oz coke? or red bull? Or candy on demand? I assume there are reasons these things aren’t offered to the elementary school set – how is strawberry milk any different?

And we are on the east side of silver spring so there are more kids on free lunch whose parents don't have the time or money to make healthy eating a priority…so again the school/MCPS is not sending a great message and doing all kids a disservice by condoning this crap.

Maybe I am overreacting/being petty in the grand scheme of the world, but strawberry milk irks me! Chocolate milk I am fine with, but strawberry? come on.

This thread is kind of shocking on DCUM.

I can't imagine any of you are addressing poverty the same way: the solution being to make sure your own kid is educated so that he/she can get a good job and not worry about anyone else. This is NOT an individual problem. Yes, of course, pack your kids' lunches, that is what I will do when my children are old enough to go to school. But I also think that improving school nutrition is hugely important. So many of our nation's kids get free breakfast and lunches, in some cases all year round. I think adults should be able to do what they want, but kids don't need those same kinds of freedoms. Just as we regulate what they learn, we should regulate what they eat at school.

And kids learn norms - if it is the norm to eat crap and have constant exposure to crap food each day they will learn it's okay and it's just normal. That is unfortunately the problem with many adults who think that it is normal to eat at McDonald's three times a week, which millions of Americans do. If you look at how the obesity epidemic has tripled in the past 20 years, it's not rocket science to think about how our environment has changed. Portions have gotten bigger, eating all the time is acceptable, never eating at home or eating food out of a box is completely normal to people. Hence, the health issues we are facing. There is no excuse for this in public schools, absolutely none.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Those of you who are suggesting that PP just send plain milk to school each day with her DC are missing the broader picture. This is a big nutritional concern that all of us should care about, in the same way that we are starting to wake up to the fact that much of the food served at schools for lunch and snack is basically crap.

Lunch has been crap since I went to school 25 years ago, and has only gotten worse. I just... brought my own lunch! I understand that not everyone can afford to make their own healthy lunch, but sheesh. People need to take responsibility for what their own kids eat! I don't think we're talking about kids that get the free lunches right here, so I don't have a lot of sympathy on an individual basis. Sure, long term we should strive to get the added sugar out and more healthy options in - I don't think many would disagree with that. But if you don't want your kid getting strawberry milk, don't let them!

PP, I agree with this, but the sad reality is that many kids don't have parents able/ willing to advocate on this issue. Just witness some of the comments on this thread, made by what I would presume to be at least relatively educated people. That is why those of us who do see the seriousness of this issue (including the nutrition/ health community) need to step out in force on topics like this.

I so agree. Until I became a public school teacher and saw what the kids are consuming everyday (Fruit Loops with chocolate milk for breakfast, sausage wrapped in pancakes and chocolate milk) I truly didn't care. Now my own child takes her lunch to school while the poorer children who eat free and reduced meals get total freaking crap for breakfast and lunch. CRAP. It is an absolute injustice. I'm trying to change the menu at our school, and the truth is, so many parents have no idea what's being served in the cafeteria.

This attitude that says pack your own and forget that the schools are serving crap to our kids is counter productive. At some point we need to act like citizens who care about more than just our own kids. I think at a minimum we should expect public schools to provide wholesome foods that don't make our kids fat.

It's our tax dollars that pay for this stuff... I expect it to be healthy.

I pack my kid's lunch and snack and include a thermos of locally raised, pesticide-and antibiotic-free milk. But, he still gets offered flavored milk from the school. And he chooses chocolate milk.

I'm not terribly pleased with it, but I don't think it's worth the commotion since we eat well at home and he doesn't get candy on a regular basis.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Those of you who are suggesting that PP just send plain milk to school each day with her DC are missing the broader picture. This is a big nutritional concern that all of us should care about, in the same way that we are starting to wake up to the fact that much of the food served at schools for lunch and snack is basically crap.

Lunch has been crap since I went to school 25 years ago, and has only gotten worse. I just... brought my own lunch! I understand that not everyone can afford to make their own healthy lunch, but sheesh. People need to take responsibility for what their own kids eat! I don't think we're talking about kids that get the free lunches right here, so I don't have a lot of sympathy on an individual basis. Sure, long term we should strive to get the added sugar out and more healthy options in - I don't think many would disagree with that. But if you don't want your kid getting strawberry milk, don't let them!

PP, I agree with this, but the sad reality is that many kids don't have parents able/ willing to advocate on this issue. Just witness some of the comments on this thread, made by what I would presume to be at least relatively educated people. That is why those of us who do see the seriousness of this issue (including the nutrition/ health community) need to step out in force on topics like this.

No what you need to do is have a seat before you end up a member of the communist tyrant club. Save your advocacy for what is going on in your own home.

If parents let their kids eat chocolate dipped sugar bars that is their
business not yours. I am sure you make plenty of choices that others disagree with.

It's so odd how people want rules and regulations on personal choices until the choice is one that they make.

Anonymous wrote:In the meantime stop giving your kid lunch money and pack his lunch and milk.

Ditto this. By packing lunch, you are probably saving money (unless you are on the reduced or free lunch program) and it has the benefit of knowing what your child is consuming. I was dead tired last night and was tempted to just fork over the $$ for my son to buy lunch but he'd end up eating and drinking crap so I made it myself.

You know what's really funny about this thread?

Cow milk of any color is just not that healthy for a human to consume in quantity.

It is amusing to listen to about 50% of the posters here whine "OMG, kill the pink milk and give us lots of plain miiiiiiiiiilk! A human drinking out of the teat of a cow is such a great idea!"

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Those of you who are suggesting that PP just send plain milk to school each day with her DC are missing the broader picture. This is a big nutritional concern that all of us should care about, in the same way that we are starting to wake up to the fact that much of the food served at schools for lunch and snack is basically crap.

Lunch has been crap since I went to school 25 years ago, and has only gotten worse. I just... brought my own lunch! I understand that not everyone can afford to make their own healthy lunch, but sheesh. People need to take responsibility for what their own kids eat! I don't think we're talking about kids that get the free lunches right here, so I don't have a lot of sympathy on an individual basis. Sure, long term we should strive to get the added sugar out and more healthy options in - I don't think many would disagree with that. But if you don't want your kid getting strawberry milk, don't let them!

PP, I agree with this, but the sad reality is that many kids don't have parents able/ willing to advocate on this issue. Just witness some of the comments on this thread, made by what I would presume to be at least relatively educated people. That is why those of us who do see the seriousness of this issue (including the nutrition/ health community) need to step out in force on topics like this.