Brown Leads Colleagues in Reintroducing Bipartisan, Bicameral Child Nutrition Bill

Press Release

U.S. Sens. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and Susan Collins (R-ME) today reintroduced the Kids Eat Local Act, a bipartisan, bicameral bill to support local and regional food systems and encourage healthy meal choices among school-aged children. Companion legislation was reintroduced in the House by U.S. Reps. Chellie Pingree (D-ME), Jeff Fortenberry (R-NE), Josh Harder (D-CA), and Alma Adams (D-NC).

"Ohio farmers grow some of the best produce in the country," said Brown. "This legislation will make it easier for locally grown foods to be served in school lunchrooms while strengthening our farms and rural communities."

Current law does not allow for school systems to ask for "local" as a product specification in procurement requests. Schools can use a geographic preference option, but it is underutilized due to unnecessary red tape for school food service providers.

The Kids Eat Local Act will support local and regional food systems by providing commonsense regulatory flexibility around the use of geographic preference for the procurement of school foods. The legislation would allow schools to use "locally grown, locally raised, and locally caught" in procurement requests. Farmers, businesses, and educators have repeatedly made requests for location-based product specifications in procurement. The bill has no cost for the federal government or school meals programs; instead, it helps to create new markets for farmers and creates more healthy options for schoolchildren.

Brown recently introduced legislation to renew an important nutrition program that supports both school-aged children and local producers. The bipartisan Farm to School Act will build on the successes of the Farm to School Program, which was authorized in 2010.

The Farm to School Program, administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, supports initiatives that deliver fresh, local foods to schools nationwide. The program was first authored by Leahy in the 2010 Healthy Hunger Free Kids Act. Grants from the program help schools across the country implement farm to school activities. The popular program is significantly oversubscribed; since 2013, USDA has received nearly 2,000 applications requesting over $141 million. Less than a quarter of grant applications receive funding each year.

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