Stay Tuned: Michelle Obama to Serve Up Another Victory for Healthy Schools on Wednesday!

That’s right. We’re starting off 2012 right with increased nutrition standards in our nation’s schools!!! On Wednesday, January 25, First Lady Michelle Obama along with the Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack will announce new nutrition standards for America’s school meals. We couldn’t be more thrilled about this win for healthy schools!!

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is making the first major changes in school meals in over 15 years (which is something in itself to celebrate)! You might be curious as to what these changes will entail. We’re curious as well, but we have an idea: Make every school meal in America USDA Gold Level certified. While only a few select schools have this coveted certification, Earth Day Network and our partners believe it is possible nationwide. The incredible change would mean offering fruits and vegetables every day of the week, ensuring whole grain-rich foods, and serving only fat-free or low-fat milk; all while maintaining proper portion sizes!

Currently in our nation’s school lunch lines, a USDA Gold Level certified meal is a rarity, but the recently passed Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act gives the USDA the authority to up the ante on school nutrition. President Obama signed this Act into law last year, and it aims to positively affect the nearly 32 million school children that participate in the National School Lunch program by making improvements to the child nutrition programs across the country!

So keep your eyes peeled for the First Lady’s announcement at Parklawn Elementary School in Alexandria, VA. We expect it to hit right around lunch time on Wednesday, and we will be following up with another post later that day on the specific changes.