[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 156 (Thursday, December 2, 2010)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2044]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 HEALTHY, HUNGER-FREE KIDS ACT OF 2010

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                      HON. ENI F. H. FALEOMAVAEGA

                           of american samoa

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, December 1, 2010

  Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA. Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of the 
``Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010,'' legislation to extend and 
improve the nation's policies and programs with respect to child 
nutrition.
  I want to thank the Chairman of the Committee on Education and Labor, 
my good friend, Mr. George Miller, and all the members of the Committee 
for their work on this comprehensive bill on nutrition programs for the 
children of America. I also want to thank the cosponsors and all the 
stakeholders for their support and advocacy.
  This piece of legislation will make improvements in existing 
nutrition programs for kids by helping our nation fulfill the following 
objectives: reduce childhood hunger by expanding access to the child 
nutrition programs; reduce childhood obesity and other health concerns 
by improving nutritional quality of meals; and make improvements in how 
the programs are administered.
  Historically, child nutrition programs have served many needs in our 
schools and communities across the nation. For example, since 1946, the 
National School Lunch program has provided nutritionally balanced 
lunches to children across the county. Today, more than 31 million 
children each school day in over 101,000 public and private nonprofit 
schools and residential child care institutions receive nutritional 
lunches through this program.
  Since 1966, the School Breakfast Program has provided nutritionally 
balanced breakfasts to America's children. Today, 11 million children 
in more than 88,000 public and private nonprofit schools and 
residential child care institutions are receiving healthy meals to 
start off their school day.
  Nutrition programs have also been a key factor in supporting children 
and the family outside of school cafeterias. Programs such as the Child 
and Adult Care Food Program and the Special Supplemental Nutrition 
Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) provide nutrition and 
support to low-income families, benefiting mothers, infants, and young 
children across the nation.
  Overall, these family nutrition programs have provided many critical 
services for our children. In 2009 alone, The Child and Adult Care Food 
Program distributed 1.9 billion meals to over 3.3 million participating 
children and adults. Additionally, the WIC program supported 9.1 
million participants in all 50 States, U.S. Territories, and 34 Indian 
tribal organizations.
  Emerging challenges, however, necessitate improvements. Most 
disconcerting is the USDA 2009 report showing an increase in food 
insecurity. The report shows that 6.7 million households, including 
16.7 million children, across the nation lacked money and other 
resources for food. This is unacceptable.
  Moreover, obesity rates between 1963 and 2004 quadrupled for children 
ages 6 to 11 years and tripled for children between 12 and 19 years 
old. Strong correlation between obesity rates and other chronic 
diseases including cardiovascular disease, hypertension, and diabetes, 
suggests that we have a major problem to confront. Now is the time to 
act.
  The United States of America must take care of her children by 
providing the necessary resources to maintain a healthy lifestyle. As 
we all know, a child's health has a direct impact on their education 
and their future.
  We must therefore address the emerging health challenges and negative 
trends by stepping towards improvements in our child nutrition policies 
and programs.
  The ``Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010'' is a crucial step 
towards addressing these challenges and reversing these trends. I urge 
my colleagues to vote ``yes'' and support this important legislation.

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