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   Sarah Taber (sarahtaber@mastodon.online)'s status on Thursday, 22-Aug-2024 09:14:43 JST Sarah Taber

   And let’s be clear: Congress didn’t start school lunches in 1946. They just made them permanent. The US made a temporary school lunch program during the Great Depression. Why?

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     Sarah Taber (sarahtaber@mastodon.online)'s status on Thursday, 22-Aug-2024 09:14:38 JST Sarah Taber

     in reply to

     And as we turn around our farm sector, we can also get more of that food from right here in NC: shortening supply chains, building rural opportunity, and strengthening our state’s economy for all of us.

     https://mailchi.mp/taberfornc/a-food-manufacturing-renaissance-is-needed-in-north-carolina

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     Sarah Taber (sarahtaber@mastodon.online)'s status on Thursday, 22-Aug-2024 09:14:39 JST Sarah Taber

     in reply to

     As a mom, farmer, and business strategist, I’m in favor of making sure there’s food at school for all of my kid’s classmates.

     Bill repeated this.
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     Sarah Taber (sarahtaber@mastodon.online)'s status on Thursday, 22-Aug-2024 09:14:40 JST Sarah Taber

     in reply to

     But whether our state is better off when all children have enough to eat?

     We know the answer to that.

     Bill repeated this.
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     Sarah Taber (sarahtaber@mastodon.online)'s status on Thursday, 22-Aug-2024 09:14:41 JST Sarah Taber

     in reply to

     Wise stewardship of our public resources matters. So does perspective. How much would it cost to make school meals free to all North Carolina children? About $115 million, or less than 1% of our state’s education budget.

     https://carolinaforward.org/blog/school-lunch-debt-climbing-again/

     Bill repeated this.
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     Sarah Taber (sarahtaber@mastodon.online)'s status on Thursday, 22-Aug-2024 09:14:41 JST Sarah Taber

     in reply to

     And with any large program, there are always things to figure out and improve—including the breakdown between state and the USDA funding, equipping school kitchens properly, and the general health and appetizing-ness of the meals themselves.

     https://www.ncallianceforhealth.org/usdas-expanded-access-to-school-meals-falls-short/

     Bill repeated this.
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     Sarah Taber (sarahtaber@mastodon.online)'s status on Thursday, 22-Aug-2024 09:14:42 JST Sarah Taber

     in reply to

     And that’s what right-wing efforts like Project 2025 get wrong. They believe school lunch programs are just aid to the poor. (They also believe helping the poor is bad.)

     Bill repeated this.
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     Sarah Taber (sarahtaber@mastodon.online)'s status on Thursday, 22-Aug-2024 09:14:42 JST Sarah Taber

     in reply to

     Project 2025 even cites the USDA history I draw on above—as proof that school lunches are merely aid to the poor. But they somehow missed how that report points to national defense, stabilizing agricultural markets, and helping all students succeed.

     https://fns-prod.azureedge.us/sites/default/files/resource-files/NSLP-program-history.pdf#page=6

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     Sarah Taber (sarahtaber@mastodon.online)'s status on Thursday, 22-Aug-2024 09:14:43 JST Sarah Taber

     in reply to

     The Depression had two food problems: farms were growing too much of it, driving farm prices down and putting farms out of business. At the same time, lots of non-farmers still couldn’t afford to buy food.

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     Sarah Taber (sarahtaber@mastodon.online)'s status on Thursday, 22-Aug-2024 09:14:43 JST Sarah Taber

     in reply to

     Individually, these problems were devastating. But together they were a match made in New Deal heaven. The USDA bought excess food from farmers, and served it to students for free. (In case you ever wondered why the school lunch program lives in USDA, that’s why.)