A House panel approved a bill Thursday that would allow some schools to opt out of the healthy meal program being promoted by Michelle Obama.
The First Lady met with school officials on Tuesday to discuss the development of the healthy school meal initiative. The initiative proposed to include more fruit, vegetables and whole grains, as well as reduce sodium, sugar and fat in school lunch foods.
But the bid has been opposed by some schools and Republican politicians. Michelle Obama defended the program, accusing GOPers of stifling nutritional standards in schools.
"This is unacceptable," she said at a White House meeting, as quoted by TIME. "It's unacceptable to me, not just as First Lady, but also as a mother."
Those who opposed the program responded to the First Lady's statements, arguing that the guidelines were expensive and short-term. The House Appropriations committee approved a bill that would allow schools to opt out of the healthy meal program if they could prove that they were losing money for six months. The votes closed at 29 to 22, allowing the Department of Agriculture to grant waivers to the affected schools.
"Bottom line is, schools are finding the regulations to be too much too quick," said Alabama Rep. Robert Aderholt to Associated Press. "They need more time."
The school officials also reasoned that they noticed that children were just throwing away the fruits and vegetables included in their meals. It was also difficult to limit the sodium and add more whole grains.
Aderholt clarified that the panel did not intend to downgrade the nutritional standards in schools, citing that the bill is temporary. The School Nutrition Association commended the panel's decision.
"We appreciate the House Appropriations Committee's support for this waiver to give temporary needed relief to some schools across the country," said SNA President Leah Schmidt to the Washington Post. "This will not halt the progress in school cafeterias; it is a temporary reprieve to allow schools to catch up."
