Secretary of Agriculture, Gov. Malloy, Legislators Join Local Students for Lunch

This article was posted by Jessie Sawyer. It was reported and written by Ronni Newton.

Third graders at West Hartford's Wolcott Elementary School had some special lunch guests at the weekly "make your own salad" bar Friday.

United States Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy, Sen. Richard Blumenthal, Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro, and Congressman Joe Courtney, as well as local officials and nutrition advocates joined the Wolcott community for lunch, and afterward held a press conference to discuss the USDA efforts to support childhood nutrition and raise a healthier generation of Americans.

Secretary Vilsack has been traveling throughout the country, promoting the USDA’s school meal regulation changes as part  of the "Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010" which was signed into law by President Obama and championed by the First Lady as part of her "Let's Move!" campaign.

"I have to tell you we were hoping for Michelle Obama," joked Superintendent Dr. Karen List as she opened the press conference. List credited many organizations in West Hartford for promoting healthy eating, pointing out the efforts of the "Growing Great Schools" initiative to bring gardens, farmers markets, and "chef-to-school" efforts to West Hartford.

U.S. Rep. Courtney (D-2nd),  who is a West Hartford native, said, "We need to use the school lunch program to help achieve our goal" of treating the epidemic of obesity. Secretary Vilsack "gets it," he said.

U.S. Rep. DeLauro (D-3rd) said that West Hartford is certainly doing something right. "When the youngsters at our right and left say lunch was awesome, you've succeeded. They don't have an agenda," she said.

DeLauro praised Vilsack's efforts to renew the USDA focus on nutrition and the well-being of kids. "It's just critical," she said.

"If you can't eat right, you can't learn. That's why we're here today," said Sen. Blumenthal.

Gov. Malloy echoed that opinion, telling the crowd, "The simple fact is that children who aren't getting enough to eat can't be learning." He is advocating for more Connecticut schools to participate in breakfast programs in addition to lunchtime feedings.

Secretary Vilsack thanked the legislators and Gov. Malloy for reinforcing his message. "It is important to take care of kids, protect kids, make sure kids are well fed," he said.

That has been one of his primary goals since stepping into the role of agriculture secretary in 2009. Vilsack said that when President Obama advised him of the appointment, he said, "I just want you to make sure the children are well fed."

Vilsack debunked the idea that eating healthier is more expensive. Maybe it is on per calorie basis, but he said that if you compare 100 calories of chips to 100 calories of broccoli you're comparing "six chips versus enough broccoli to fill this room."

Vilsack praised the USDA's replacement of the complicated Food Pyramid with the much more straightforward "Choose My Plate" initiative, as well as the enormous and widespread impact of the "Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010." The younger kids especially, like those he ate with at Wolcott, embrace the healthy choices easily. "It's a generational shift," he said.

Wolcott Principal Plato Karafelis was thrilled to have his school chosen for the visit. Wolcott, along with every other West Hartford Public School, has received the bronze certification with the USDA's Healthier U.S. School Challenge. "Earning the bronze is really rigorous, but all of the schools are anxious to move to the next level," Karafelis said.

Karafelis said that Wolcott's salad bar is "great," and he said that at Wolcott, participation in the school lunch program has increased since the menus became healthier last fall. "I'm not seeing as much food left on the plates as we used to. They are making healthier choices, eating more. That's anecdotal, but I've been here a long time," he said.

West Hartford Public Schools Health and Physical Education Supervisor Rosey Bonner said it was "such an honor" to have the Secretary of Agriculture come to West Hartford. "It really reflects what the school community and parents have embraced ... it's a celebration of community," she said.

West Hartford is the only district in the northeast to have all schools certified, said Superintendent Dr. Karen List.