Cuts to school lunch and food bank funding mean less fresh produce for children and families

Marlene B. Schwartz

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Marlene B. Schwartz , University of Connecticut

(THE CONVERSATION) The U.S. government recently cut more than US$1 billion in funding to two long-running programs that helped schools and food banks feed children and families in need. The U.S. Department of Agriculture says the reductions are a “ return to long-term, fiscally responsible initiatives .” But advocacy groups say the cuts will hurt millions of Americans .

The reductions came just days before the release of the Trump administration’s Make America Healthy Again report , an analysis of the factors causing chronic disease in children. One of those factors, the report says, is poor diet.