Stop the madness!!! Frozen french fries are "fresh veggies"????

[CatWoman]

:wow:

Eat your fruits and french fries



Who knew that last year, as most news surrounding the french-fried potato focused on congressional Republicans and others marketing them as "freedom fries," the agriculture department quietly made french fries the nation's newest fresh vegetable:

"The Frozen Potato Products Institute appealed to the USDA in 2000 to change its definition of fresh produce under PACA to include batter-coated, frozen french fries, arguing that rolling potato slices in a starch coating, frying them and freezing them is the equivalent of waxing a cucumber or sweetening a strawberry.

The USDA agreed and, on June 2, 2003, the agency amended its PACA rules to include what is described in court documents as the 'Batter-Coating Rule.'"

You cannot make this stuff up.

http://www.salon.com/politics/war_room/index.html

[Cannikin]

1. So I can get my RDA of veggies by having fries with ketchup?

[wryter2000]

2. What else are you going to eat with Ronnie's vegetable?

Remember catsup?

I love potatoes, but no one in the world considers them a vegetable. Except the Gipper or a Bushie.

[CatWoman]

9. I know I'm gonna get my ass kicked for this

but I thought Ronnie WAS the vegetable.

[Fenris]

13. Well...I don't recall!

:D

[wryter2000]

15. I knew a kid who had a T-shirt to that effect

It had a drawing of a bottle of catsup and a drawing of Reagan with the caption, "Which is the vegetable?"

[Bog Frog]

3. WHAT A FROZEN CROCK OF SHIT!

That is all. Re-deep.

[onehandle]

4. Franken was just talking about that.

Pass the Ketchup and you've got yourself a "salad".

Reagan would be proud!

[hiphopnation]

5. They were just discussing this

on O'Franken. Totally sick. I can't afford to send my child to a private school. I'm so :puke: to send her to a public school where this is accepted as the norm.


:puke::puke::puke::puke::puke::puke::puke::puke::puke::puke:

[donco6]

14. What?

Who says we accept this as the norm? We certainly don't here in my district.

The problem is that fresh fruit and vegetables cost us a lot more per serving than anything frozen, and with the pitiful reimbursement we get for our programs, we can barely afford frozen. Not to mention the cost of refrigeration, the cost of transporting (with gas prices killing us even more lately), prep costs - it all far outweighs the reimbursement we get from the feds for the National School Lunch Program.

Honestly, I'd like to see parents make a meal for your their kids for the $2.19 that we get, and have it meet all the qualifications for reimbursement:

"School lunches must meet the applicable recommendations of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, which recommend that no more than 30 percent of an individual's calories come from fat, and less than 10 percent from saturated fat. Regulations also establish a standard for school lunches to provide one-third of the Recommended Dietary Allowances of protein, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, iron, calcium, and calories.

"School lunches must meet Federal nutrition requirements, but decisions about what specific foods to serve and how they are prepared are made by local school food authorities.

We have to analyze every meal for nutrient content, fat content (we removed all of our fryers this year to reduce fat), as well as maintain all the other qualifications (no pop sold during lunch, foods offered in competition have to meet certain guidelines, etc.) It's just not as easy as people think.

[shadu]

6. when I read this earlier it made me angry

In fact, it so ridiculous, it is funny.
What else would you expect from Bush?
Once a bastard, always a bastard.

[in_cog_ni_to]

7. That's so Reagan's "ketchup is a vegetable" will have

something to go with it! These people are just plain NUTS! All of them!

[jobycom]

8. They sweeten strawberries? Damn. How? nt.

[Q]

10. The FDA and USDA works FOR corporations

...just like the rest of the federal government. Their 'mission' is no longer one of protecting the consumer...but the industries from scrutiny and lawsuits.

[progressivebydesign]

11. From what I gathered on this...

It's ALL about money. As usual.

[tom_paine]

12. The madness WILL NOT STOP until we flush some sewage into the Potomac

And that is the Whole Truth.

[Straight Shooter]

16. Doesn't anyone bring their lunch to school anymore?

I hated school lunches, always brought my own. I guess nowadays there's too much chance of someone stealing a sack lunch, though. Sad.

I wonder how greasy those french fries will be once they're cooked and served. Nothing like adding to the obesity factor of a country where so many adolescents are struggling with their weight.

Score 1 for the corporations, a big goose egg for the kids and parents. :shrug: