People who are interested in food had a lot of issues on their wish list for the Obama administration, and some of those hopes have already been dashed for some with the proposal of former Iowa governor Tom Vilsack for Secretary of Agriculture. Others hope for policy changes more than personality changes and are still looking out for big changes to be made.

Of course there are a lot of priorities for Obama, from the economy and the wars to climate change and poverty, and food policy just might not be ranking very high. But Obama has said he wants to end childhood hunger in America, and given that more people have trouble getting regular access to food in these tough times, there’s going to have to be some thought and action in the food arena.

Problems of hunger and obesity linked

Solving the hunger problem isn’t just about throwing money at it. The truth is that hunger and obesity often go together, because when people have just a little money for food they tend to choose the most calorie-rich options.

So it’s not enough just to give people food stamps, they need to both be educated about healthier choices and have ways to easily access those choices where they live. There’s talk of somehow linking public assistance to some kind of nutritional standards, but when a lot of people still live in areas where fresh produce just isn’t available, it’s a hard rule to implement.

There are pilot programs allowing food stamp users to double their money when it’s spent on fresh produce at farmers markets, but again the issue of availability (as well as funding) keeps such plans from being implemented nationwide.

Don’t expect food safety push

One thing in the food arena that isn’t likely to be a big issue in at least the next year is food safety, according to assistant Senate majority leader Dick Durbin.

He told the Baltimore Sun that the issue will have to wait for more pressing issues to be dealt with. Durbin says the government is likely to remain dependent on individual farmers and processors to ensure that their food is safe and rapidly report any problems. Yeah, because that’s worked great so far.

New dietary guidelines make first steps toward reality

One food-related story we’re likely to hear a lot about in the new year is the revision of the dietary guidelines, a new version of which are due out in 2010.

The government has already started accepting comments on the new recommendations, (you can see some of them or leave your own) and has already heard from such groups as the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, The Salt Institute, the American Vegan Society, the Corn Refiners Association and the Metabolism Society, among other concerned groups and individuals.

The process of developing the guidelines is long, and involves lots of meetings between the rule writers, health experts and industry representatives as they try to outline what Americans should eat for optimum health while not annoying food processors too much. Stay tuned.

(By Sarah E. White for CalorieLab Calorie Counter News)

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This entry was posted on Friday, December 26th, 2008 and is filed under Food miscellaneous, Food safety, Nutrition, Public policy. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed. Permalink.