 Tom Colicchio is a busy man. In addition to his recent fact-finding Gulf Seafood mission, the chef, restaurateur and Top Chef head judge testified before the House of Representatives, advocating for H.R.5504, the Improving Nutrition for America’s Children Act. He spoke with Eatocracy about his family's fight against childhood hunger, the curse of cheap calories and the sheer terror of appearing before our nation's elected officials. (Stay tuned for part two of the interview tomorrow on the topic of Gulf Coast seafood and the power of social media to carry a message.) Eatocracy: What is your personal connection with school lunch reform? Tom Colicchio: My mother managed a school cafeteria. A couple of years back, my brothers and I were trying to get her to retire. Sitting down with her, we said "Mom, you're always complaining that you're tired. You're fine. You don't have to work anymore." She said, "I work because I know the kids coming into my lunchroom and the kids coming for breakfast - this is probably the only thing they're going to eat all day." This was about six years ago. Prior to that, I thought it was a job that when we were a little older, she decided she wanted to work. Then it became clear that it was part of her social life. But it was never put in terms where she actually realized she was affecting people's lives. That really resonated with me. It really brought home all the work we've been doing with groups like Share Our Strength, Feeding America and groups like that. It really put a face to it. Eatocracy: Is there any connection in your day-to-day life now? Tom Colicchio: More recently, my wife [filmmaker Lori Silverbush] started mentoring a young girl from Brooklyn and she would come to the house and she would eat and then she'd say "Oh, I'm full. Can I bring this home?" And we realized what she was doing; she was bringing it home for her siblings. When food stamps run out halfway through the month, these kids are hungry. And they're fed sweetened juice water, just to put something in their stomach; it's not nice. There's this old adage that you can't make the food better at lunch because they don't want it, they don't like it. I don't buy that. When we bring her to our house, she wants a salad. She ate asparagus for the first time and she couldn't believe how good it was. We bring her strawberry picking and she had no idea that strawberries came out of the ground and didn't realize how good they were - how delicious it was. Two episodes ago on Top Chef, we were in a school lunchroom in Washington, and these kids wanted seconds and thirds because the food was delicious. Eatocracy: In your ideal world, what would be on every kid's plate? Tom Colicchio: In an ideal world for me, school lunch would be free for everybody. There's a great case made for that. There's a woman named Jane Poppendieck who wrote a book called 'Free For All: Fixing School Food in America' - a great read that outlines school lunch from the very beginning, from what Harry Truman started. It was in response to recruits showing up for the Second World War, who were malnourished and couldn't fight. Now we have the opposite. We had a Major General who testified that forty percent of new recruits going into the service fail out because they're obese. It's not from overfeeding. This is what people don't understand: obesity is a symptom of poverty. It's not a lifestyle choice where people are just eating and not exercising. It's because kids - and this is the problem with school lunch right now - are getting sugar, fat, empty calories - lots of calories - but no nutrition. Eatocracy: Cheap calories. Tom Colicchio: Exactly - cheap calories. And they're hungry, they're eating more cheap food. Ideally, you want to see whole grains, fruits, vegetables, lean protein. It shouldn't be pizza...for me it's not even about how good it is - if it's good, then kids will eat more of it. You need something more than chicken nuggets and pizza. There's a school of thought, this was about fifteen years ago, where kids are the clients coming into the school lunchroom, so let's make this look like a fast food line. That's what they tried to mimic and that's what the kids get. My feeling is yeah, the kids want that, but my seventeen year old will sit in front of the X-Box and not take a shower if I let him. We're adults. We're the ones who should teach the kids what's good to eat. I don't think the government should ever regulate what we eat at home, but we're feeding them in school with tax dollars. Quite frankly, if my tax dollars are being spent to feed kids, I'd rather feed them better food. Eatocracy: Did you have any inkling you'd be a person with a big platform to explore these issues? Tom Colicchio: No, I didn't. I've been involved almost as long as I've been a chef, trying to give back - especially when it comes to hunger. Fundraisers for Share Our Strength, Food Bank of New York - I'm on the board of Children of Bellevue in New York and Health Watch International. When I started doing the show, I didn't realize it was going to be as successful as it is. My feeling is, if you're going to be called a celebrity, you might as well use it for some good. It's better to testify for school lunches in front of Congress than get drunk in a bar somewhere and misbehave. Eatocracy: What does it feel like to get hauled before the House? Did you feel like you were in trouble? Tom Colicchio: I spent some time in the principal's office when I was a kid, so I know the feeling. It's very intimidating. My wife and I are working on a documentary about domestic hunger; this is how the whole thing came about. We were working with a group called FRAC [Food and Research Coalition] in D.C. They asked me to do this. I said okay, but I got nervous, because you don't know what kind of questions they're going to ask and you don't want to completely blow it. So we had a written testimony - and I was nervous! I've been in front of a TV camera, but I was nervous. Eatocracy: I read that you said it was surreal. Tom Colicchio: Totally. I went in the offices first and there were some photo ops. Then they said we're going to get ready and go and then all of a sudden - you're there. You open up a door and you're there. Wow! Eatocracy: So it's not your eighth grade class trip. Tom Colicchio: Noooooo. But, you know, it was great. There was a good hour that went by - Secretary Vilsack gave his testimony and there was some Q and A and then there were four panelists who went on after him. So after seeing the back and forth, you kind of get the lay of the land. But I was the first to testify and I started and I was like, "Um um um um..." Deep breath! Okay, good. Eatocracy: So what's scarier - going before the House, or anything you've ever done on Top Chef? Tom Colicchio: Top Chef is not scary because it's edited, number one, and I got a pretty good idea they want me to be the voice of reason, so they edit out all the bad stuff. But no – I was nervous because you sit there and you realize...they say there are two things you never want to see made - sausage and law. And I know how to make sausage, so now I'm just making law. It was pretty cool. Eatocracy: Did you ever think you'd be considered the voice of reason? Tom Colicchio: There were three of us who were the voice of reason. And one person from The Heritage Foundation said that if children are getting obese, then maybe we should stop feeding them. I was like [sarcastically] "okay." He became my adversary right away and I managed to get a few digs in afterward. It is intimidating. You have Representatives up there and you don't know what questions are going to come - if it's going to be a friendly question or a hostile question. ow, this is a bipartisan bill - one of the few pieces of law that is going to be bipartisan and it has support. It's eight billion dollars over ten years, and they have to find the offsets. So the bill is up for vote and they'll find the offsets afterward, so there was a lot of discussion about where the money is going to come from - which was way above my pay grade, It was one of those things - you check it off, been there done that. Great. Next? Eatocracy: What is the thing that's standing in the way? Who can possibly argue that feeding kids more and better and getting them to exercise is a bad thing? Tom Colicchio: Well, here's the thing. There are two bills right now. There's a bill in the Senate that Blanche Lincoln from Arkansas is sponsoring and her bill asks for four and a half billion dollars over ten years. Representative George Miller from California is in the House and his bill is asking for eight billion. So that's the big question - which bill is going to pass. Obama asked for ten billion over ten years, so they scaled that back a little. The question I have, and I didn't get a chance to ask is - if we were deficit neutral or if we had a surplus right now, what would they be asking for? Probably a lot more. You need even more to push the needle here. My understanding is that there hasn't been additional funding to this bill because it's been up for votes for several years - they let it go by and they just reissue it with the same amount of money. I don't think there's been any additional funding since 1973. It's misleading because the schools turn in the numbers they get reimbursed and now there are more kids going into the system, so there's more money going into the system. This is money on top of that. This is money for more after school feeding, more breakfast feedings, summer feeding programs - things like that. Kids - just because school is out - there's still need. The one argument that was made is that there's so much money going into social programs - this is just more money going to the same group of people. But it's needed. Stay tuned for more from Chef Colicchio on the topic of Gulf Coast seafood. Previously: Top Chef Tom Colicchio believes in Gulf Coast seafood and stops by Eatocracy HQ to share a #fishsongs contribution |
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divorce is of course one of the worst thing that you could experience but you could get over it ~;.
there is nothing good getting a divorce, this is perhaps the saddest moment of your life-.:
Man Boobs-nuff said!
My kids go to a peanut free school and this is easy to solve. I have switched all 4 of my kids to almond butter. We went through several brands before we found one that they liked. It is called Barney Butter, it is made in a peanut free facility and they can't even tell that it is not peanut butter. So much healthier for them too!!
I lika the coclaroaches in the kitchen if they're fried just right.
Well God Bless America! What has happened to us as a people? There was a time in this country when people believed in reaching down and pulling the next one up. Yes KitKat, if you can't afford children YOU SHOULD NOT HAVE THEM. But once the children are here, do we as decent American's just let the kids starve? When this great country of ours throws away more food than people in third world countries eat? Sadly, our country has lost it's footing. Common sense is no longer common. There's seems to be no middle ground anymore, just idealogues. I've made up my mind, and I won't let you confuse me with the facts. Breeding? Let children go hungry? Pay taxes for children that I didn't have? Well wake up America! If you have a social security number, you're getting something from somebody, some way or some how. Maybe not right now, but live long enough! But here's the really sad part. People talking about children as if they were talking about "roaches in the kitchen". HOW FAR WE HAVE FALLEN!
Thanks Tom Cruise for all the great performances. You do a fantastic job and I think you are wonderful
Feeding the hungry is a great cause with many leading organizations supporting this mission.
I wholeheartedly agree with Tom C – what a breath of fresh air he is! And re KitKat above, just ignore her. She's living in a dream world.
Divorce will always lead to depression and anger towards the other party. As much as possible avoid divorce.:`
I don't have children and I'm perfectly happy to have tax money spent on lunches for kids who otherwise might go hungry. I'm perfectly happy to see tax money going for food stamps, WIC, and such.
Look, either we pay to feed people – especially children – today or we pay tomorrow for having unhealthy citizens. It's cheaper to pay for decent food now.
And the school lunches? a lot of the food is from tax money that goes to farms – often large, ccorporate-run farms – to subsidize their operations. So keeping kids from going hungry, helping them grow up healthy, is perfectly reasonable in my eyes.
I totally feel it would be fair to actually expect parents to take responsibility. I myself am a single 24 year old with a six month old surprise. But lets face it: She was (and still is) a wonderful surprise. And a lot of work. It was my CHOICE to keep her. I take no charity. I bust my bum to show her it is better to earn that dollar, and put some effort to the GDP to keep this economy going than to ask for hand outs. I take pride everyday as I go into work knowing that even if the day sucks and my boss is a jerk for the next 10 hours, I'm contributing something small to society and setting a long hard example for my little one.
I know the economy is bad and several are out of jobs. I am a believer in putting our charity and/or tax dollars not into handing out as much as trying to uplift. More money for scholarships, grants, healthier food in the cafeterias, paying good teachers well. We are still a very strong economic country. We STILL have the resources to encourage good behavior instead of making up for bad.
I feel sorry my child mostly. She will feel the burden of supporting more people's welfare through taxes than I ever will at this rate.
I know it's not a child's fault if they can't eat, but I get so tired of parents spending their money on hair, nails and expensive car leases and then whining that they can't feed their children.
My mother-in-law's husband disappeared when she was pregnant with her only child. Even if she had had grants or loans for school, she couldn't afford to take any time off a minimum wage full-time job. She often went a couple of days without food so her son could eat. She eventually managed to get a certification for medical assistant and was able to buy a house, but there were several years when she depended on help from her parents and the school. I never went hungry as a child but I did after college, renting a room for $185/month, working full-time for a little better than minimum wage. New tires on my hand-me-down pickup were planned for two months in which I didn't eat much. I relied on the food bank for sustenance and felt extremely lucky when my $15 could carry me through a couple of weeks – remember, this is with a degree and full-time job. We don't have children now by choice, but we donate what we can to schools, kid's programs at the YMCA, and act as an anonymous Santa Claus for a neighbor's kids. We've watched them turn into wonderful teenagers who help disabled adults in the neighborhood. Call it whatever you wish, but from the dawn of time humans have helped one another – society doesn't flourish when there are sick and hungry. Shame on all of you who think you are superior because you and your loved ones have never gone hungry or had to ask for help. Your accomplishments would have been far more difficult on an empty stomach.
I have no problem feeding hungry children. I give away more money directly to needy families in my community (in addition to the taxes I pay) than I probably should considering that my family sometimes ends up tightening the belt strap more when we have a hardship; My fundamental question is – where do we draw the line? If the underlying problems contributing to the lack of money are not addressed, we WILL run out of money at some point...it WILL happen; It's happening now in California; LESS government means LESS government waste; Give me more of my money back and I'll give more of it away...I don't need it to be filtered through the government. I like what the person from the Phillipines/3dworld shared...why can't we spend our money on something like that...talk about the ultimate in "green";
I am 47 years old and there has never been a time in my life where I felt completely and financially comfortable in bringing another human being on to the planet to feed, clothe and shelter. I have a college degree, but I also have nieces and nephews who need my help because I have two sisters who never gave money matters or education much of a second thought. I also have my aging parents who were just as flippant in regards to getting pregnant without the means to support. My childhood was very financially unstable. My father was always looking for work and my mother never worked. Their money pains did not become important for them until their children were teenagers and then they would discuss their difficulties with us as if we were adults and should be informed. These conversations did nothing but ensure in me that this predicament would never happen to me. I am childless too, but I still have plenty mouths to feed. I'm probably inadvertently feeding many of yours.
The arguments above that endorse free meals for people who have fallen on hard times are laudable, but these meals are not just for students whose parents are suddenly out of work, divorced or sick. These meals are distributed without much regard to those incidences. These meals are distributed as a matter of entitlement to most parents who fully expect that their children will be fed by society before they are sent home. We use gas to pick them up for school, hire a staff to feed them breakfast, nurse them, teach them, mentor them, feed them again and use gas to take them home. Some districts even buy their uniforms. We are talking about millions and millions of children who belong to society for 8 to 9 hours a day for 5 days a week for 10 months a year. We have them almost as much as their parents have them and most parents are thrilled with that fact. What they are not thrilled with is when we discipline them. When we do, the parents suddenly become interested parties within the child's life and begin to exert some fake parental weight. Why wouldn't the lower socioeconomic classes have as many children as they want? Lots of children are a good insurance policy for old age. Surely one or more will make something of themselves and help out the parents in their sunset of life. Society pays for these insurance policies. You do and I do. As a childless person, I am offended by this practice and this blatant disregard for the extent to which society has lent a helping hand when none should be given. Breeding with reckless abandon is the story here.
You're offended by insurance policies for old age? Are you not planning on having an old age? If you are going to kill yourself as soon as you can't be gainfully employed anymore, than perhaps you are not a hypocrite. But if you want to contribute nothing to the future generations, then sit around and benefit from their existence, you are most certainly a hypocrite.
To get a bit of perspective, read Children of Men by P.D. James. It may drive home to you what would happen if people stopped having the children you complain so much about. You complain about reckless breeding, but did you know North America has an aging population? Look that up, find out what it means and why it is a problem. Then maybe you can make an intelligent comment on this issue.
It is SO easy to say "stop spitting out babies." These are the same tired comments that folks on the right make all the time, yet none of them actually takes the time to see how little it would actually cost to make sure that every hungry kid in this country would actually cost...pennies out of each or our paychecks. There are always the "It saddens me but...." comments that are so old and tired it's pathetic. Kids need to be fed regardless of their unfortunate circumstances. It's just that simple. Don't punnish kids for the bad decisions of their parents!
My Grandmother used to have a saying, "If you can't afford the gas, you can't afford the Car." Yes, there are many people who didn't plan for life's tragedies to affect their ability to provide for their families. But, there are others who are having more kids to milk the system and get more money. Maybe if I've never been behind someone at the grocery store watching them pay for their seafood and cigarettes with food stamps, I'd feel differently. But as someone who is child free by choice (mainly because I know I can't afford them), it still frosts me to have to contribute my hard earned tax dollars to this broken system....
Ok, lets say it's the worst case scenario, no dad, mom smokes a crack pipe and sells her food stamps. What about the kids? Do you just let them starve? Don't you care that they are innocents in their parent's choices? You are punishing the children because you don't like the parents.
My children are grown and have their own children now. They pay for their children's school lunches when their kids want to eat what's on the menu. My money is paying for school lunches in schools my grand kids don't go to yet I don't mind at all. As a human being I want to know that all children in this country are fed nutritious food. I want to know that even if their parents are awful those children at least get to be fed twice a day. Maybe especially if their parents are bad.
I'm with TC, I want more nutrition and less empty calories but I will never regret a single bit of food that goes into any child's mouth.
The real question is "why is the school system paying for breakfast and lunches?" Do these children have parents? Why aren't they paying for their food? If they are that poor, wouldn't they qualify for food stamps and general welfare benefits? It's time for people in this country to suport themselves and stop having the goverment supporting them on the backs of other hard working people.
Well Said, Fran.
You didn't actually read the article did you? C'mon, be honest with us... you didn't did you? I only ask because if you had you might understand why welfare and food stamps and the like aren't much of an option. You might actually understand why investing some money in this actually ends up helping us all by keeping down obesity rates and medical expenses that burden all of us. You might even, from reading some of the comments, have come to realize that these kids are going to be the ones supporting you later in life. So maybe, if you had read the article, you'd understand that a little enlightened self interest is called for here.
Some of the most hardworking people I know make very little money. Please let's stop equating money with hard work.
It saddens me to know there are malnourished and hungry kids in this country, and I feel sorry for them. But whose fault is that? Tell you what, if you can't afford to feed one child, don't have another one, and another one, and another one... It's time we place responsibility in the parent's hand and stop doling out cash to support people who continue to have more children, or don't care if they have more children, just so they get a bigger welfare check. Some public assistance is necessary, but alot of people in this country don't know what it means to work hard and make your own way anymore. Anyway, stop spitting out babies.
Sure, lets stopping spitting out babies. Can we count on your support for comprehensive and realistic sex education classes that aren't based on abstinence? How about low cost access to birth control and other family planning tools? Are you putting your money where your mouth is by supporting Planned Parenthood? Or is that not your problem either?
While I am all for improving school lunches I will still not let my kids eat there. We pack nutritious, interesting, and good tasting food for our kids for about $25/week. (2 kids) Yes, it would be cheaper to let them eat the junk food available at school, but we select the foods as a family and each kid helps pack their own lunch. We are below poverty level but make it a priority to make sure our kids eat well, thus we can't afford things like cable and fancy vacations (we take our kids camping to national parks every year). You can have limited funding and still provide for your kids.
As someone that worked in one of Tom's restaurants, he should also take a look at what they serve the staff that work for him. While a few notches above cafeteria food, and every once in a while there was a truly stellar staff meal,there was plenty of frozen chicken, processed cheeses, iceburg lettuceand empty carbs and calories.
At The Nourishing Kitchen of NYC (http://www.eatwellnyc.org) we help kids to make the right decisions with food no matter where they are, we also educate their parents and also fill the gap that the school lunch system leaves. Check us out!!
I was shocked when I substitute taught for one year at the Houston Independent School District at the number of children getting free breakfast and lunch. I never had an entire class that did not get a free lunch. I wondered how in the world they all qualified. There is a larger problem to this story and it is parents who can't afford to have children. They continue having children knowing that society will provide. The more you provide, the more hungry stomachs will appear. The giant Hispanic population in Houston was and still is overwhelming for the school district and the incredibly high school taxes within that district reflect this overpopulation of needy students. The United States is feeding,educating and providing low end jobs to a little less than one third of the estimated population of the entire country of Mexico. We are subsidizing an entire country on a day to day living basis. I know that this story is about nutrition, but we must look at the larger picture of the reason for the need to feed these hungry children.
Tom C – American Hero – he gets it. Jaime Oliver – British Hero – he gets it. To all the countless others (including Tom's mom) THANK YOU for everything you have done and are doing to help America's kids get better.
DenverGrl, I am right there with you. I recommend reading the book "SkinnyBitch", not because it advocates vegan lifestyle, but because it shows where our food comes from, how it is packaged, and what/how the FDA and other governmental agencies have misused their powers and how it has all affcted our diet over the years. My Father was right – diet soda is Lucifer's ambrosia. I just wish I realized my Dad was right when I was 16 and got my first job at a fast food joint. My diet consisted mainly of diet soda, thinly sliced roast beef, salads and the occasional french fry. Could never understand why I kept gaining weight instead of losing after walking over a mile to work, work 6-8 hours on my feet, and then walk a mile home. It is the soda, folks – and the diet stuff is even worse for you!
Free? So the food will just appear without anyone paying for it?
More than once reading this today and I have to ask, do you really not understand? It is FREE to those who eat it. Just as there are FREE lunches in prisons and my church also hosts a FREE dinner night. If you are seriously squabling over the semantics (calling it free when it is funded by tax payers), you're missing the big picture and, frankly, seem to be trying to shift the focus from STARVING and HUNGRY DEFENSELESS CHILDREN onto whiny tax payers.
The meal is FREE to the CHILDREN consuming it. It is FREE to them because their families make such little money there is a real risk that they will go hungry OR starve. Undernourished children do not do well in school, may have behavior problems, may developed health problems, and are at risk for delinquency. All of these things – healthcare, special ed, and crime – cost us MORE than proper nutrition, which prevents many adverse outcomes. Do you want to make sure innocent children are fed or later imprisoned (where you STILL end up feeding, housing, clothing, and caring for them)?
So argue all day long about calling it a "free" lunch, if you like. The question before us is actually ensuring that CHILDREN, innocent, defenseless human beings not only don't go hungry but, in fact, receive the actual nutrition (because a jr burger from the dollar menu may be filling but doesn't nourish the body or mind) they need to become PRODUCTIVE adults.
Fyre and kit kat
you are heartless twits. Many parents are able to care for their children, but some have circumstances beyond their control. My parents never envisioned divorce and we were on reduced lunches for a while, but mostly I packed my own. Other people are in the same situation.
"quality people breeding?' hopefully you do not consider yourself one of them.
Actually I know I would make an awful parent which is one of the reasons I CHOOSE not to have children. I do not have the patience for it. I feel is a huge responsibility not to be entered into lightly or with rose-colored glasses.
I think you take my point as an assault on your bad decision making skills which it is not. I am saying remove the tax exemption for children and then everyone will bare the burden equally.
So you would also remove the dependent exemption for everyone? The one income, married couple expemption? The exemption for support of an adult dependent? And all the various exemptions,credits, loopholes? Are you advocating a straight percentage tax? Or do you just want to do away with the child exemption?
Also your assumption those who disagree with you view your opinion as an "assault" seems a little paranoid. Further your assumption those who disagree with you have "bad decision making skills" is quite a leap. Discuss the question at hand but please do so with facts and reasoned argument.
I want to address the childless people who somehow feel they are getting cheated by the system. Anytime you get service or products from any person for any reason whatsoever you are benefiting from the unpaid labor of parents who raised those workers. If you collect Social Security do you really imagine that your contributions full fund your retirement? It is the current workers (provided by unpaid parents) whose contributions fund your benefit checks. So get real. Unless you live in the wild, using only food and products of your own manufacture without the use of anything that may have been produced by another human being then you benefit in all ways from the product (children) of parents. So don't have children but don't imagine that you could even survive unless someone, somewhere produced children to sustain the society that sustains you.
I understand your point, however you are forgetting that we get penalized by the federal tax exemption. Remove this and then most of the childfree debate is mute as we are all paying into the society in general as equals.
And do you have a mortgage? Are you getting a tax break by deducintg your interest? How about health insurance from your employer? You get to pay yourn premiums wiht pretax dollars? Or are you retired? Do you take advanatge of all the tax exemptions, all the retiree discounts? Do you have Medicare? SSI? Others are paying tinto systems for you but receive no direct benefit themselves.
How about this instead. We just remove you from the social security rolls because, as you know, the future generations are the ones that pay for the current generations payments. So these kids you don't want to support won't have to support you. Sound fair?
Obviously you and Kit Kat have never had any hardships of any sort and have never needed to depend on family, friends, or the government. My sister adopted a child and financially was able to care for him then had a stroke, her husband then got prostate cancer 2 years later and lost his job (1st time ever in his entire life at age 50). Prior to these matters they were well educated, financially stable, healthy (no prior health or weight concerns), and contributing citizens. You have been living a blessed life and should be thankful for the things that you don't want that you don't want. You are lucky enough to have your freedoms and complain incessantly how bitterly unfair life is. Life isn't fair and we must all do our part. You never know when YOU may need to depend on others for assistance and support. Open your minds!!
Frankly, it shouldn't matter if you have kids or not. Anyone who is an American citizen has a responsibility to this society. I do not have children, but I will certainly support giving kids proper nutrition in schools even if I pay a few more in taxes. I want my society to thrive in the future, and I will contribute to that. Individualism is good to a point, but then it just becomes about being selfish and greedy.
I grew up eating school lunches – nasty pizza, half beef/half soybean burgers, fried burritos, french fries, baked potatoes, covered in greasy chili etc. At home, we had stuff that was mostly packaged: hamburger helper, chef boyardee (sp?), spaghetti, white bread, and veggies from a can. I never learned how to eat healthy. I'm now 34 years old and 100 lbs. over weight partly b/c this kind of eating caused me to have pre-diabetes, which makes it very difficult for the body to burn fuel, so it is stored as fat. I am now learning how to eat healthy and am changing my body and life. I certainly take responsibility for not educating myself sooner. But, for godsake, don't give kids this kind of poor nutrition and nutritional education when they are just learning how to live. What they eat when they are growing up is what they will eat when they're adults! For conservatives out there, think of it this way: If you educate them poorly on nutrition now, they will cost you billions later in health care to cover complications from poor nutrition.
Kit Kat.... Thank God you do NOT have any children. The last thing we need on this earth is another narcissistic, greedy, high maintenance, brainless twit
And how is stating that I don't want to pay for everyone else's breeding decisions make someone a narcissistic, greedy, high maintenance, brainless twit? Sounds more like you describing yourself and your careless breeding.
I just want to not have to pay for everyone else's kids. If the federal tax exemption for a child were removed and the playing field of who pays for what were a little more democratic I could "MAYBE" agree that all school lunch should be free as s direct means of funding the future. However if you don't like the food served at your school that I pay for how about you pony up your own dime and send lunch with your kid.
My taxes are already too high paying for the indiscriminate breeding choices of others. The reason not everyone has a Lexus is they cost too much, let's make kids the same and only quality people would breed.
Then move to a place where they don't make citizens pay taxes.
So you equate "quality" with money? That says a lot about your priorities. Many quality people are poor. Your narrow worldview scares me.
TOM I AM A HUGE FAN FROM THE BEGINNING I WATCHED I READ ALL THE COMMENTS MOST WERE GREAT AND SURPORTED OF TOM'S AFFORDS BUT SOME OF THE PETTY TEAPARTIES BITTER CROWD GOT IN THERE WITH PALIN ,HANNITY, RUSH AND FOX FRIENDS HATEFUL BIGOT BIAS STUFF.THEY ARE NOT AMERICA MOST AMERICAN WILL HELP ANY IN NEED THAT IS THE AMERICAN WAY BORN AND RAISED AND WILL DO WHAT EVER TO HELP AN FELLOW HUMAN BEING.
Reason for obesity especially with children in USA, fast food and foods full of sugar and grease. Growing up in Philippines, I remember in our Home Economics Class, we cook meals for lunch and recess, we also plant veggies in our school, we use those veggies to cook free meals for kids. Parents also donate veggies from their own garden. Market vendors donate a lot of veggies, majority of them has children going to public school, it gives them comfort their children is eating something nutritious in school and it was free, We feed chidren from first grade to 4th grade ( I was in 6th grade). Our PE (Physical Education) was spent on gardening, every class is assigned a plot at the back of our school, they can plant any veggies they want, we harvest those veggies and use it for our cooking. We can do the same thing in USA, we have abundance of food but we are feeding children food high on sugar and fats, not good.
As a huge fan of Top Chef, I am thrilled that Tom and his wife are doing something about school lunches in public schools. Yes, it is true that nothing is free – there is no such thing as a free lunch. However, we are willing to pay for unnecssary wars and God knows what else but I agree that school lunches/breakfasts are necessary especially for low income families. I was lucky enough that my parents could afford to make healthy lunches for me and I hardly ate at the cafteria (even during the '80's when I was growing up, the school lunches were unhealthy and discusting) but I know not everyone is as fortunate as I was. Keep up the good work Tom!
Tom colicchio is truly an inspiring chef. Coming from a third world country-Philippines, I am surprised that the problem in childhood hunger exists in country where wastage of food is more than what other poor country produces .. Mr. Top chef is doing a great job ! I am truly inspired of his advocacies .. If the goverment could not give support at the moment, each one of us should remember – social obligation. We should do our part.
The sad thing (and a big part of the problem) is that people get stuck on the selection of the food and not the quality. Yes, there needs to be healthier food but when most of it is stuff thats sub standard does it really make it good for them because its not fried?
Why is this even up for debate?
School is a place to learn. Teach the kids about nutrition, exercise, science, cooking, etc.
Pass the damn resolution already!
In all fairness, home is also a place to learn. How many parents are shoving fast food at their kids from the time they have teeth. They will mimic what they are taught! When I see folks using welfare and food stamp money to buy nothing but frozen, processed foods, blame the parents. Funny thing also, so many of these parents who "can't afford" to provide lunches for their children are walking around with the newest cell phone, ipod, and getting their nails done each week. So now me, as a single person with no children have to pay higher taxes to support your children. Whats wrong with this picture!!! Do schools need to serve better food, yes! But parents also need to take some responsibility for what they are feeding their kids at home!!!
couldn't have said it better! Thanks
First, many parents can't find decent food in the neighborhoods in which they live. They cannot afford to travel long distances to betters stores so they buy what will last the month and they buy what they know. Second, most young single people in this country have benefited countless times from various programs, perks, etc. How long since you were out of high school? Did you play sports? Did you participate in plays, clubs, etc? did you sit in a chair and learn soemthing? Guess what, we (as in other Americans) helped pay for that. Did you get a little help with college? Or maybe you took advantge of oh, cash for clunkers, or your grand parents are using Medicare? People in glass houses...
Lynne, you are right. Kids (and adults) are obese generally because they ate crap growing up and continue to do so. We have relied on school lunches (not just for needy people). I ate school lunch and we were not poor, it was an option available and we took it. In the winter, a hot lunch should be better than a pbj. But the FDA soon took over and started approving chemicals, additives, preservatives, artificial sweeteners in our food products and the only thing we ever thought was "Well if it isn't safe to consume, the FDA would hardly approve it would they?" Ballocks! Since when was the last time you ate an artificial sweetener ripe off the tree, or toasted up a freshly baked preservative? Aside from my little (FDA are morons) rant, keep in mind that most parents don't even know what is in school lunches and the kids don't know any better. It is up to the people approving the foods for our schools and the tax payers, parents and anyone else who cares what is being served in our public schools to make a difference.
And who is supposed to teach the parents? You do understand that most of these parents were taught the same way of eating growing up, right?
When I was in college, I lived in poverty. I shared an apartment with others, the only one we could afford, which was in walking distance of a tattoo parlor, liquor store, Gas station/smoke shop, and Wendy's. The dollar stores, wal mart, and grocery stores were too far away for anyone without transportation. The town lacked public transportation of any kind. The gas station would let you use food stamps but charged interest (something illegal, yet common) so a pack of ramen noodles retails for .15 cents but they charged $1. They had no vegetables and only rarely canned fruit which was often astronomically expensive. I subsisted mainly off of microwaveable things and Wendy's dollar menu. My situation was unfortunately common among poor people including my neighbors with children.
When you talk about so-called "personal responsibility," you are necessarily speaking from a position of gross, bloated priviledge. You have reliable transportation, reliable income, a grocery store within driving distance, fresher options at that grocery store, and the ability to turn down less than healthy choices because you can afford better. Poor people do not enjoy these luxieries. Poor parents are especially hard hit because they have hungry mouths to feed and may not have a lot of time to cook (single parents especially). When a single mom buys a can of sodium drenched, high fructose corn syrup laden soup from the stop-n-go for her two kids and knows it has to last 2 days, the nutritionally bancrupt food is watered down and served as long as it lasts. There's no transportation, the grocery store is expensive, food stamps run out, and there's nothing else she can do. School breakfast and lunch at least ensure that her kids aren't starving to death! No child should starve just because their parents are poor particularly when so-called support programs don't go far enough, job training opportunities really only exist for childless people or people with good support networks, and the cheapest places to live often lack necessities like grocery stores.
horrendous public school lunch program was one of the reasons i pulled my daughter out of the public school system.
teachers couldn't care less as long as they got their pay and perks,
parents fed the children more donuts and cookies in the name of "fund raising" every year.
Actually, teachers *do* care about school lunch quality. For one thing, some of us eat school lunch fairly regularly. I have lunch duty and watch (and often share) what's being served, and what the kids are eating, and what they are throwing away. I try to bring my lunch because the carrots taste musty, the "fresh" fruit is under- or over-ripe, the sodium content is astronomical, and the carb-to-protein ratio is awful. And don't ask about the salad, one of the only veggie choices, because it must have traveled 800 miles to get to our foodservice warehouse before it gets to us. And the "egg" on top tastes like chilled library paste. Ugh!
It's to the benefit of America to fix this system. Kids who are well-nourished learn better, behave better, and are stronger physically, emotionally, and intellectually. How do you feel on the days when you are too rushed to eat breakfast and end up at McD for lunch? Not so hot, I think. Teachers and school nurses keep granola bars and crackers on-hand to help kids make it through the day. And they pay for them out of their own pocket because there's no funding for such things.
And then we worry about them over the summer and over winter & spring breaks: lots of kids are lucky to have cereal at home; anything that's cheap and filling. I believe we could reduce our prison population if we took better care of our kids, nutritionally. Eating well allows them to focus in school, to have the energy to get off the couch and go outside, and to think about what to be when they grow up. That's so much more productive than thinking about how hungry you are when you go to bed at night.
Curious Steve, last I knew teachers were not put in charge of school lunches. Please cast blame where it belongs. On all of us! We are the taxpayers that are funding school lunches. It will never be reformed unless we stand up and shout that our kids are more important than to be the next person in line at McDonalds. A simple lunch of sandwich, salad and fruit should not be costing us that much!
Its a sad fact that inmates in jails and prisons get better food (for free) than our children in schools. The swill being passed off as "nutrition" is sad indeed. I asked a school lunch nutritionist where the vegetables were on a "burger and fries" lunch once-she told me ketchup counted as a vegetable. Huh??????? Why are kids forced to learn about ancient history and stuff that has no relevance, but are not taught to take care of the ONLY body they will ever have.
Yes, during the Regan Administration, ketchup was actually considered a vegetable!!
Dear Patricia, It is not a child's fault if they have no food. Please visit your local Food Bank and ask them about these children in your area. Thank you to all the generous indiviuals, like Tom and others who donate their time and money to help kids in need.
Then the people who gave birth to the children should have given them up for adoption. What we need in this country is more personal responsibility for one's actions, NOT more government intervention because the parents are inept!
A guy who been laid off,has tried to find work for six months and run through his savings and has three kids? Would that be the "inept" parent you're talking about? How about the mother whose spouse dies unexpectedly and leaves her with little money? Or maybe the young paretns who are trying to live up to their responsibilities but need a little help?
Next time you get knocked off your feet by something unexpectd and someone offers to help you out, I suppose you'll turn them down because it was your own ineptitude that put you there. Jeez, do unto others, remember?
yes, put the kids in the direct care of the government. how does this help?
Kitkat, you are proving beyond the shadow of a doubt to be a heartless boob who is only posting comments to rile people up. It must be wonderful and magical to be you! I am glad I dont know you.
Tom, you're a good man. Keep up the great work!
Thank you Tom Colicchio. We need more of you in the World.
I just posted: When will Americans stop using the word "free?" Nothing is free. Everything is paid for by taxpayers.
And you responded that I had already said that. I did not. Do you not like what I said and you are refusing to post?
Thanks.
patricia condon
I am guessing you don't have kids, and don't know how some parent's feel when they can't afford to give their kids money for meals at school, or how that kids feels when the only meal they will be getting that day is the school breakfast and school lunch. Yes money comes out of the taxpayers pockets, but to these other people, they consider it "free", as that's one more dollar they could put towards maybe rent, utilities,school supplies etc.....
You want kids? Then make darn sure that you can pay for their expenses. The childfree already are penalized by paying more income tax, so why should we have to dish out more in property taxes too? Shouldn't we get a credit for NOT contributing as much to the problem of depleting our natural resources because we chose NOT to have children?
I understand paying SOMETHING to help pay back our education in the public schools when we were children, but when does it END? Folks with kids need to take responsibility for the OWN and not depend on the village so much. It takes PARENTS to raise a kid, people!
Kitkat, who is going to have to fund your Social Security benefits when you age out of the workforce? My son and many other people who are kids now, IF they are employable. Being properly nourished has a huge impact on energy and the ability to learn and work. In a perfect world, we'd all provide for our own needs and consider whether or not we can "afford" children. That just isn't so, and it's not going to change. So, Kitkat, invest in your old age by helping to feed the future workforce.
Do you not realise that sometimes....things change? I certainly didn't PLAN on getting divorced! My ex and I were financially able to support our son, but now I have to do it on my own and I sure didn't plan for that, so why don't you get off your high horse and maybe take into account that every situation is different. BTW, I hope you are NEVER put in a situation where you suddenly can't provide for your children.
KitKat, have you ever considered some of these parents were able to provide for their children when they decided to have them, but something(s) has changed in their finances where they can no longer afford to shell out $50 or more a month for school lunches? Loss of income, or perhaps a void parent not doing their part. What does being judgemental and casting stones help? Regardless of the reason, is it the child's fault?
KitKat, I agree that you should make sure you can afford to have children. That is all very well and fine in a perfect world. But in the real world, where most of us live, things happen like losing jobs, death of one or more parents, dismemberment or disability due to a previously undiagnosed condition or perhaps a car accident that some uninsured motorist caused. Because of these things, people who planned and saved and started a family now cannot afford to feed them properly. It is that, or pay the rent/mortgage and make sure they have a place to sleep at night. What Tom Colicchio was saying – and please check out your labels – is that we eat empty calories. We, who put our trust in the FDA, have been eating crap for years and didnt know it. Now that we do, most of the food in the supermarket is crap – read the frigging labels. I hope, Kitkat for your sake you never experience a situation in which you cannot afford to feed a loved one or even yourself.
AMEN KitKat – I'm with you on this 100%. Nobody gives me any $$$ to help care for my 3 dogs, but then again, I only have 3 dogs because I CAN AFFORD THEM!
I will NEVER vote for a school levy until they make it fair to those of us who don't have kids. People should pay for their kids, not expect the rest of us to pay. If you can't afford them, keep your legs together!!!!!!!!!!!
I'm child-free, and I want to make it clear that I want my tax dollars going towards improving schools, including providing good, nutritious food, to all who need it. It does take a village – a caring and responsible society – to raise the next generation.
Be careful with your obvious hatred of kids.
Our youth today are the leaders, teachers, policemen, firemen, military, doctors, etc etc of tomorrow, when your old worthless chlidless azz will be in need of help from most of the aforementioned. Oh, God bless!
Kit Kat.... Thank God you do NOT have any children. The last thing we need on this earth is another narcissistic, greedy, high maintenance, brainless twit
LMFAO! Well said my dear!
When will Americans stop using the word "free?" Nothng is free. Everything is paid for by the taxpayers. Thanks.
I would rather pay taxes towards getting free lunches instead of paying for welfare checks.
Or cruise missiles.
I have no problem at all with my taxes going to good school lunches (yeah!) and welfare checks (yeah! still feeding kids, never forget that) and for programs to keep kids and families off the street.
I DEEPLY resent all the vast amount of $$ that goes to cruise missiles and all the rest that supports the military economy. And how about those enormous billions of $$s that go uncollected as tax break and outright subsidies to the big oil companies – the richest companies ever to arise in the history of mankind – a sick and dirty shame.
All tax money that goes to the future of this country – our children – is what makes us a great country. Subsidizing big corporations just makes us wage slaves.
Yes, it's being paid for by taxpayers but the taxpayers are the ones that benefit from a well educated well nourished population.
The fight against school food lunch needs heavy hitters like Tom! Thanks for what you do! Everyone can do their part in this fight though-not just celebs! I'm part of a movement called "Two Angry Moms" -a documentary that outlines this horrible food and how to make changes on district levels. I reccomend it to anyone curious about school food! http://www.angrymoms.org
This is wonderful. Please keep up the good work, Chef Colicchio. I'm a high school teacher, and my school recently introduced a salad bar as an alternative to the normal fried food and pizza that the cafeteria serves. The kids went CRAZY for it. Kids DO want good food, and they WILL eat it if it is provided for them.
When my daughter was in High School,(5 years ago), I was both shocked and appalled when I saw the fast-foods that the school was feeding to her and fellow students.
Kudos to Tom Colichio for using both his celebrity and expertise to try and make desperately needed social change.