WASHINGTON — The International Dairy Foods Association applauded Chairman
Blanche Lincoln, D-Ark., U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and
Forestry, on the breadth and scope of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010.
The bipartisan bill strengthens federal child nutrition programs* by requiring
that science-based nutrition standards apply to all food and beverages in
schools and by increasing the funding available to provide healthy school meals.
“We value the exceptional leadership that Chairman Lincoln is providing to
improve the health of our nation’s children,” said Connie Tipton, president and
CEO of IDFA. “This legislation recognizes the nutritional importance of dairy
products for school-age children and ensures that schools offer milk varieties
that align with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans.”
Because milk is an excellent source of nine essential nutrients and vitamins,
the Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend that children ages 9 to 18
consume 3 servings a day of low-fat or fat-free milk or dairy products,
including yogurt and cheese. Milk consumption per capita is declining,
particularly among middle- and high school-age children. The U.S. Department of
Agriculture reports that most American children fail to meet the recommended
dairy servings. The government also reports that only 5 percent of girls and 25
percent of boys ages 9 to 13 get the calcium they need.
The bill provides $4.5 billion in new child nutrition program funding over ten
years. It is paid for through cost savings in other federal programs and aims to
ensure that eligible children are participating in the programs, improve the
quality of meal benefits, and modernize and improve the integrity of the
programs.
* The federal child nutrition programs include the National School Lunch
Program, School Breakfast Program, Special Supplemental Program for Women
Infants, and Children (WIC) and the Child and Adult Care Food Program.
About the International Dairy Foods Association
The International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA), Washington, D.C., represents
the nation’s dairy manufacturing and marketing industries and their suppliers,
with a membership of 550 companies representing a $110-billion a year industry.
IDFA is composed of three constituent organizations: the Milk Industry
Foundation (MIF), the National Cheese Institute (NCI) and the International Ice
Cream Association (IICA). IDFA’s 220 dairy processing members run more than 600
plant operations, and range from large multi-national organizations to
single-plant companies. Together they represent more than 85 percent of the
milk, cultured products, cheese and frozen desserts produced and marketed in the
United States. www.idfa.org.