During a Senate Agriculture, Forestry, and Nutrition Committee hearing prior to the congressional recess, Sen. Adam Schiff (D-CA) spoke about a bill being drafted that would eliminate federally-funded meal programs for students.
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00:00Thank you, Chairman and Ranking Member. Thanks for holding this hearing today, and Dr. Studi,
00:09thank you for being here. It's nice as an Adam to be in the presence of another Eve. My wife
00:14is Eve also, by the way. Before we get to the questions about the bill, as we speak,
00:23my colleagues on the other side of the aisle are drafting a bill that would eliminate school meal
00:27programs for millions of kids. That bill may come to the Senate as soon as this week. That bill is
00:34the prime, the bill that is the prime focus of this hearing deserves attention, but I don't see
00:39how we can discuss children's health and nutrition without acknowledging the important role of
00:43federally funded school meal programs that are literally a lifeline for so many kids. And I asked
00:50some of the school districts in California to send me their experiences, and let me just read one
00:55one that highlights the importance of our support for school meal programs. I was in the cafeteria,
01:04and a second grade class was boarding the bus for a field trip. The teacher had told all the students
01:09to bring your lunch because we won't be able to go to the cafeteria today, figuring everyone had food
01:15at home at this school on the right side of town. Lucy came to the cafeteria at 9 30 as they were boarding
01:23the bus to ask for something to drink because daddy didn't have anything to drink at home. When we
01:29checked what Lucy did have, she had a small bag of Fritos and two pieces of leftover Halloween candy.
01:34I asked Lucy where her lunch was, and she looked at the ground and said, the teacher said,
01:39we won't be back in time for lunch, and this is all we have at home. Lucy relies on school lunch,
01:44even on the good side of town, even when no one realizes she does. Children suffer in silence,
01:50even on the good side of town, in the middle of affluence. I seriously cry every time I tell
01:56this story and think of her face. That's a good illustration of what will be at stake on the
02:02floor this week with proposals to make massive cuts to the school meal programs. Let me turn to
02:09the question I have about this bill. My question revolves the absence of any alternative that
02:20involves non-dairy alternatives in the bill. In California and many states represented by members
02:25of the committee, there are millions of students who are lactose intolerant or have adverse reactions
02:30to dairy. Lactose-free milk is not always a good option because of their cost to schools and because
02:36some kids can't drink milk due to sensitivity to milk proteins, and some kids simply want
02:41a non-dairy option. At the same time, requiring a formal written note for an alternative due to
02:46inability to drink milk is an unnecessary bit of red tape for students and parents. If this bill
02:56is about giving children access to nutritious options, would it improve health outcomes as well
03:02as a parent and student sense of choice to have easy access to non-dairy alternatives for kids?
03:10Thank you for that question. I can speak first to the dietary guidelines and what it recommends
03:18related to what's included within the dairy food group. So the dairy food group within the dietary
03:26guidelines does include a variety of different cow milk options. It also includes soy milk and so
03:32soy yogurt as alternatives. And I say alternatives, but they are literally within the food group.
03:38So I think that your question about their uses within school meals might be a great question for
03:46the next panel. I know we also have data on that within FNS, but I can say within the dietary guidelines
03:51themselves, soy milk is provided as within the dairy group and it can certainly be a healthy way to
03:59meet dairy recommendations. Well along those lines, do you see any reason for authorizing schools to
04:07offer whole milk on the lunch line, but not fortified soy milk from a nutritional point of view?
04:14From a nutritional point of view, cow's milk and soy milk are included in the same group and provide very similar
04:23nutrient compositions. I thank you and this is not a denigration of the bill which I support in the
04:30House, but it is a call to include non-dairy alternatives as well. And with that, I yield back.
04:41Thank you very much.