Proposed school lunch changes draw fire — and a new analysis of impact on children

Spurred by the coronavirus pandemic, many communities whose schools have closed for the duration are striving to keep breakfast and lunch available to children who rely on them. An analysis out today from a group supported by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation counters what it calls a longer-term threat. In January, the USDA’s food and nutrition arm proposed changes to the National School Lunch and School Breakfast Programs to give greater flexibility for providers. In the foundation-funded report, health experts decry weakened nutrition standards — less fruit, fewer whole grains, fewer varieties of vegetables, and more starchy vegetables than standards set in 2010 — and their potential harm for the most vulnerable among the 29.5 million children who eat school lunch and the 14.7 million who eat school breakfast every day.