Meet the Bill that Could Ruin Michigan's Farm-to-School Programs

Like most parents, Michigan resident Rachael Hilliker cares very much about the kinds of foods her kids eat. Hilliker has a three-year-old daughter, Claire, and her fiance is the father of an eight-year-old and 10-year old. All three children attend Michigan's public school system. So when Hilliker found out about House Bill 4306, she was understandably irate.

"The types of foods kids are going to end up with on their plates is not going to be healthy food," Hilliker says.

That's because HB 4306 could be the death knell of fresh, nutritious school meal programs in Michigan. The legislation, sponsored by Rep. Dave Agema, mandates that public schools throughout the state must privatize their custodial, transportation, and food services programs. In other words, say goodbye to the lunch lady and freshly prepared, local foods and hello to corporate catering services like Sodexo, Aramark, and Chartwells.

Supporters of HB 4306 claim that privatizing schools' food service programs is more efficient and cost-effective. If we're just looking at school meals from a dollars-and-cents perspective (which let's face it, most supporters of this legislation are), perhaps that logic makes sense. But let's be real: School lunch isn't just about the bottom line. Kids consume about half their daily calories while at school, which means these meals can either help or harm students' health, education, and futures.

There are many problems associated with using corporate food service providers like Sodexo, Aramark, and Chartwells. For one, privatizing schools' food services pretty much puts the kibosh on initiatives like farm-to-school programs or school gardens. Corporate mega-caterers tend to seek out the cheapest goods on the markets, like imports from China and frozen, processed foods. HB 4306 doesn't say that food service providers can't source fresh produce from local, Michigan farmers, but it's unlikely that they will. Seeking out farm-fresh apples is not only time-consuming, it tends to cost more than buying up frozen pizza and crates of syrupy fruit cocktail.

Food service providers like Chartwells and Sodexo have also come under scrutiny lately for their shady use of corporate kickbacks. As recent investigations have revealed, food service providers regularly accept rebates from food manufacturers who want these companies to stock cafeterias with their foods. Big Food opens its wallet, and in turn, food service providers like Sodexo and Chartwells fill lunch lines with unhealthy, processed vittles like cookies, frozen chicken nuggets, or taco chips. Food service providers are technically supposed to give all monetary rebates to the school district, but evidence suggests that some companies may keep a little to line their own pockets, too.

Ed Bruske, author of "The Slow Cook" blog, recently investigated corporate kickbacks in Washington, D.C.'s public schools. He found that since the fall of 2008 through February of 2010, Chartwells, D.C. schools' food service provider, received almost $1.1 million in rebates from companies like Kellogg's, Otis Spunkmeyer, Pepperidge Farm, and Cloverland Dairy. In other words, when Chartwells ordered products like Apple Jacks cereal, Pop Tarts, or flavored milks for school cafeterias, these treats' producers gave Chartwells a monetary kickback.

These types of practices not only feed kids cheap, processed foods, they set them up for a lifetime of unhealthy eating habits. "Eating habits are formed very early in life, so if they [food manufacturers] can put their chicken nuggets in front of students in the first grade, then that’s what these kids are going to eat for the rest of their lives," says Chris Bedford, president of the Center for Economic Security and co-creator of the petition against HB 4306. "Food service providers establish food branding at schools instead of investing locally in local food by local farmers."

In short, supporting HB 4306 means supporting the industrial food system — to the detriment of Michigan's school children. The House Education Committee is holding a hearing about HB 4306 tomorrow, March 16th, so it's important to speak out against this legislation now. Hilliker created a petition on Change.org asking Michigan lawmakers not to support this destructive bill. You can stand up for local food and farm-to-school programs by signing Hilliker's and Bedford's petition asking lawmakers to say no to HB 4306.

Photo credit: Bruce Tuten via Flickr