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| If you wanna call it a vegetable, at least put something green on it. (image by ElfQrin (Valerio Capello) |
And tomato paste is a vegetable.
By Linda Felaco
Are you having flashbacks to the Reagan years yet?
Remember when Reagan tried to make ketchup a vegetable in order to save money on school lunches—despite the fact that tomatoes are fruits? Well,
apparently our elected officials don't know any more about botany now than they did then, because in a move that will surely please 9-year-olds across the land,
Congress is seeking to declare the small amount of tomato paste spread on a pizza a "vegetable serving" in school lunches.
Yes, Congress is once again bowing to the interests of agribusiness lobbyists over the valiant efforts of nutritionists with the U.S. Department of
Agriculture to stem the rising tide of obesity among students. This effort even has national security implications given that
obesity is the number one medical disqualifier for military service.
You might recall I reported a few weeks ago that
Congress had blocked USDA's attempts to limit the number of times per week students can be served tater tots, in deference to lobbyists from potato-growing states. Well, our congressional leaders weren't content to stop there in their overruling of government
nutritionists. In addition to tomato paste as a vegetable,
Congress is requiring "further study" on the sodium-reduction requirements proposed by USDA and requiring USDA to define "whole grains" before
initiating guidelines on the number of servings.
Yes, raw tomatoes are nutritious, and so are some tomato-based products. But smearing a tablespoon or two of tomato paste on a pizza does not make it a
vegetable any more than sprinkling alfalfa on a Boston crème doughnut makes it a vegetable.