Government and Politics
May 8, 2024
From: California Governor Gavin NewsomLOS ANGELES - On May 8, 2024, First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom and U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack visited Sotomayor Academies in Los Angeles to spotlight the California Farm to School and universal school meals initiatives and efforts by the Biden-Harris Administration to ensure all children have access to healthy, nutritious meals while at school.
The visit highlighted farm-to-school efforts underway in California and the role school meals can play in supporting local and regional food systems, mitigating climate change impacts, and providing healthy food to students. It comes just weeks after the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) rolled out new nutritional standards for school meals based the latest science-based recommendations from the Dietary Guidelines for Americans.
“Together, California Farm to School and Universal School Meals provide students with two free nutritious, delicious, and locally sourced school meals daily,” said First Partner Siebel Newsom. “This nation-leading strategic focus on childhood nutrition puts the well-being of California’s children first as it lays the foundation for healthier bodies and sharper minds, fueled by nourishing, wholesome, real food.”
“USDA is proud to have a strong partner in the state of California in enhancing child nutrition programs so that they continue to serve as one of the most powerful tools in a child’s future,” said Secretary Vilsack. “Ensuring children have consistent access to nutritious food is not only good for their education, but for the future of our nation. I applaud the state of California for their efforts to expand access to healthy meals for all students while supporting local farmers and businesses.”
First Partner Siebel Newsom and Secretary Vilsack were joined at Sotomayor Academies by California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) Secretary Karen Ross, Los Angeles County Supervisor Hilda Solis, Los Angeles United School District (LAUSD) Superintendent Alberto M. Carvalho and Kat Taylor, a social impact investor. During the visit, they met with child nutrition experts and saw firsthand the positive impact California’s leadership on school meals has meant for students.
California has taken significant actions to strengthen their school meal programs, including:
USDA touches the lives of all Americans each day in so many positive ways. Under the Biden-Harris Administration, USDA is transforming America’s food system with a greater focus on more resilient local and regional food production, fairer markets for all producers, ensuring access to safe, healthy and nutritious food in all communities, building new markets and streams of income for farmers and producers using climate-smart food and forestry practices, making historic investments in infrastructure and clean energy capabilities in rural America, and committing to equity across the Department by removing systemic barriers and building a workforce more representative of America. To learn more, visit www.usda.gov.