Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution Fights French Fries

Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution Fights French Fries

"Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution" on ABC has declared war against French fries in our school lunch programs. He has literally banned them from the local high school in Huntington, W.V.

During a high school lunch period, Jamie is serving a dish that turns out not to have enough vegetables to qualify under USDA guidelines. Rhonda McCoy, director of food services for the city's schools, admonishes Jamie for not having "a cup and a quarter" of fruits and vegetables in his meal of chicken teriyaki stir fry with noodles and veggies that also includes a half cup of fruit for dessert. McCoy remedies the situation by putting French fries into the food line since they count as a vegetable.

"When I found out that a French fry was considered a vegetable, it insulted me, it upset me, and it was a small little inkling as to why maybe we have the problems that we've got," said Oliver.

So do French fries count as a vegetable? Yes, they do, according to the government.

French fries have been on the list of "fresh" vegetables since 1996 under the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act. They are considered fresh because they fall short of the guidelines that would qualify them as "processed."

I don't know about you, but I find this pretty appalling. The USDA guidelines for school lunch programs were established in 1946 when President Truman signed them into law. I'm sure at that time they had no intention of French fries being considered a healthy vegetable.

Something else you might be surprised to learn are the calorie counts of school lunches. The minimum calorie standard for a school lunch for high school age children is 825 calories, which is supposed to translate to about 30 percent of a child's daily needs. However, the American Heart Association suggests 1,800 calories a day for a 14- to 18-year-old girls and 2,200 calories for boys of the same age. This means the 825 calories is at least 38 to 46 percent of daily recommended totals. And if most of those calories are consumed with flavored milk and French fries (a favorite of the students on "Food Revolution"), then you really have to call into question the nutritional value of the lunches being served to our children.

If you would like to do something about making a change, you can start by signing Jamie's Petition. For a behind the scenes glimpse of Oliver's goals for the new show, check out our recent That's Fit interview.

Truckers lose challenge to Calif. Emissions rule

http://www.courthousenews.com/2010/04/05/26132.htm
Truckers Lose Challenge to Calif. Emissions RuleBy SONYA ANGELICA
CN) - The D.C. Circuit dismissed a trucking association's claim that the government has given California too much leeway to set emissions standards that exceed federal limits. The American Trucking Associations disputed a 2004 rule establishing new standards for "non-road" engines, a category that includes refrigeration units for trucks transporting frozen or perishable goods. The standards sought to reduce diesel particle emissions 75 percent by 2010, and were phased in by model year. The rule applied to engines based in and operating out of California. The Environmental Protection Agency approved the standards in 2005. A congressional waiver allows California, due to "compelling and extraordinary conditions," to implement emissions standards that are stricter than federal limits. Truckers claimed that the EPA inadequately explained the "extraordinary" conditions in California justifying the rule and that the agency did not consider the full costs of implementation. The trucking association also claimed that the California rule amounted to a national regulation, as many trucks pass through California and will be subject to the rule. The federal appeals court in Washington, D.C., rejected this argument as "weak," because the rule applies only in California. Geographic and climatic conditions unique to the state, combined with high population and vehicle use, have led to "well-known" pollution problems there, the ruling states. The EPA also adequately considered the costs of the rule, estimated at $2,000 to $5,000 per unit, the court determined. The agency's conclusion that the rule complied with federal law "was reasonable and reasonably explained," Judge Brett Kavanaugh wrote. The D.C. Circuit denied the truckers' petition for review.

NYT - Healthy and safe school lunches

NYhttp://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/05/opinion/05mon4.html
Healthy, and Safe, School Lunches
It is probably too much to hope that the more than 30 million school lunches served every day will taste absolutely fabulous. But Congress should at least make certain that whatever lands on those cafeteria trays is nutritious and safe to eat. Every day it delays doing so is another mealtime when millions of students are cheated of programs that could help relieve hunger and reduce obesity.
A reauthorization of the Child Nutrition Act is now before the Senate. The bill’s main sponsors, Blanche Lincoln, an Arkansas Democrat, and Saxby Chambliss, a Georgia Republican, have written useful revisions and improvements. The measure deserves prompt approval. It is also time for the House to produce its own version. If Congress can act by late spring, next year’s school cafeteria crowd can be more confident that the food is healthier and safer to eat.
The Senate bill reauthorizes several antihunger programs for children, but its biggest impact would be felt in schools that offer free or cut-rate meals. The bill would give the Agriculture Department new powers to set nutritional standards for any food sold on school grounds, particularly junk foods that contribute to obesity. It would expand the use of local farm products, organic food and school gardens, and require the government to notify schools more quickly about tainted foods. It also provides the first real increase in funding in 40 years.
The bill can and should be improved when it reaches the floor. President Obama — no doubt nudged by Michelle Obama, who has personally campaigned for better nutrition — asked for an additional $10 billion over the next 10 years for child nutrition. The Senate version provides only $4.5 billion extra. The Senate should also ban all trans fats, a cause championed by Kirsten Gillibrand, a Democrat from New York.
The driving force behind the House bill is Representative George Miller, a California Democrat, who is expected to ask for stronger food safety regulations. He also seeks more money for fighting childhood hunger and obesity, especially in the schools.
In many ways, this is yet another side of the health care issue because better childhood nutrition is preventive medicine at its best. The new federal powers proposed in these bills would improve what millions of young Americans eat every day — and improve their chances of a healthy life

The Funny Fruit

http://www.seattlepi.com/food/417897_131261-blogcritics.org.html
The Funny Fruit
By OLITHIA ROSEBLOGCRITICS.ORGNo split is complete without the banana. Without this fruit there would be no heavenly scent of warm banana bread laced with walnuts. No banana pudding or cosmic, melt-in-your-mouth Bananas Foster because there is no need for rum if there are no bananas to flambé. Its sweetness is mellow and its flavor distinct. The shape is recognizable everywhere from cartoons to viral videos to the iconic cover of the Velvet Underground’s debut album. So, could the banana be considered the funniest fruit? To answer this question we must understand the fruit itself.
The banana is unique. It is one of the most important food crops of the world because of its year-round availability. It is valued for its nutrition and flavor, providing a source of protein, fiber, vitamin C, and potassium to those who consume it. The species itself is known to have originated in Malaysia and has spread throughout different regions of the world through the times of exploration and conquest. The banana's starchier close relative, the plantain, is one of the most important foods that has been consumed since prehistory.
Similar in importance to the role of potatoes in Europe, since its introduction in the fourteenth century the banana has been a major source of food in places such as the Caribbean, Southeast Asia, and parts of the Pacific. The original wild and uncultivated species are know to have many large, hard seeds and come in a range of colors such as red, green, and purple.
However, in the western world we like our bananas yellow and Cavendish, which is the main varietal found in lunch boxes and cafeterias across the country. These bananas are seedless, sweet, and eight to twelve inches in length. The Arabic word banan, meaning finger, is the origin of the name for the fruit that was then small as a man’s finger, unlike the huge bananas found in the supermarkets today. Contrary to popular belief, the banana does not grow on a tree but a plant and is a giant herb that is in the same family as lilies and palms. Since it is the number one most popular fruit in the United States, it could also be considered the most popular herb in the U.S. that isn’t smokeable.
What are the stereotypes that make the banana something to be laughed at? The number one reason that it may cause people to giggle like school children is the numerous innuendos made possible by its phallic shape. Then there is the banana peel gag that has been used in many cartoons, films, and even tested on shows such as MythBusters. People falling down can be funny, but add a banana peel and things can get downright dangerous, as proven by the over three hundred banana-related accidents recorded in Great Britain in 2001.
Then there is the oldie but goodie belief that monkeys love bananas. Trying to find the origin of this stereotype was a bit difficult as everyone has their own opinion, but consider this as a possibility: The first zoo in the United States opened in 1874 in Philadelphia. Two years later bananas were introduced to the United States at the Centennial Exhibition, also in Philadelphia. Monkeys love foods that are sweet and the country was “going bananas," pun intended, over bananas. It may seem that monkeys have a preference for the mellow yellow, but then some monkeys like to eat bugs as well.
So, no matter how you enjoy the banana, whether it is in a cream pie or on YouTube in pixelated animation screaming, “It’s Peanut Butter Jelly Time!,” it has become a symbol for both slapstick comedy and sex as well as having many culinary uses. This fruit is as satisfying as it can be entertaining -- unless you don’t like bananas. Then there are always apples and oranges, but that would be boring.