Join the Time For Lunch Campaign- Help us write letters to Congress!

Hey everyone! I work for the non-profit Slow Food USA and right now we are running a national campaign to get healthier food into school lunches. School lunches provide around 31 million American children and young adults with at least one-third of their daily calories. For some students this is a main source of daily nourishment. You guys deserve nutrient rich, balanced school lunches—not meals that make you sick! So far over 30,000 kids, teachers, parents, and food workers in all 50 states have gotten involved in this campaign and now you can too.

Right now, the government reimbursement rate per school lunch is $2.53. Over half of that amount goes to cover overhead costs and your school lunch directors are left with just about a dollar per meal for food. School food directors are doing the best they can with what they have, but they need more resources in order to provide healthy, fresh food. Congress is planning to update child nutrition programs in the beginning of 2010. We are asking Congress for one more dollar per student per day.

The movement is gaining momentum and you guys have already have sunk your teeth into addressing the health of young Californians, but we still need to show Congress concrete evidence that people—especially students—want this change in schools. We’re running a campaign to get thousands of letters– especially letters from students– sent in to Congress by the beginning of 2010. Since you’re the front-line and already interested in the health of our nation, we need your help writing these letters! Youth in your area, led by Emily Ventura from our chapter in Los Angeles, have already written over 300 letters. I urge you to join them to show congress that your future should be their priority!

On our web site, we’ve posted tips and resources for writing letters and organizing letter-writing lessons:
http://www.slowfoodusa.org/index.php/campaign/time_for_lunch/get_in...

Contact us at timeforlunch@slowfoodusa.org if you have any questions or comments whatsoever! Also, make sure and let the Time For Lunch team know when you get letters written so we can keep a running tally going!