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A MEMORIAL
REGARDING THE ENHANCEMENT OF SCHOOL CHILDREN'S NUTRITION AND
NEW MEXICO'S FARMING ECONOMY.
WHEREAS, school nutrition programs provided through the
national school lunch program and national school breakfast
program have provided millions of healthy and nutritious
meals to children across New Mexico for more than sixty
years; and
WHEREAS, school nutrition programs play an important
role in helping to ensure that every student in New Mexico
starts school ready to learn, because a hungry or
undernourished child is less likely to be an eager and
attentive student; and
WHEREAS, school nutrition programs have demonstrated a
commitment in New Mexico to promote children's health,
well-being and educational excellence, primary goals of
student success; and
WHEREAS, in New Mexico, two hundred three public,
private and bureau of Indian affairs schools serve over two
hundred twelve thousand children who participate in the free
or reduced-price school meal programs, constituting
two-thirds of the total school population; and
WHEREAS, New Mexico is ranked number one in the country
in the number of students participating in school breakfast
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programs; and
WHEREAS, the threat to the future health of New Mexico's
children has never been greater because, as in the case of
children across America, the percentage of New Mexico's
children who are obese or overweight (twenty-four percent of
the state's high school students) is growing; and
WHEREAS, if New Mexico does not reverse these risks by
improving its young people's diets, the state is in danger of
raising the first generation of American children with a
lower life expectancy than their parents; and
WHEREAS, obesity and diet-related diseases cost New
Mexicans three hundred twenty-four million dollars
($324,000,000) annually; and
WHEREAS, healthy eating habits are formed during
childhood and decrease the risk of chronic diseases; and
WHEREAS, in 2007, the New Mexico department of
agriculture, in conjunction with farm to table, a New Mexico
nonprofit entity, published the New Mexico farm to school
directory, which lists more than one hundred New Mexico
farmers who are ready, able and willing to supply nutritious
and locally grown foods and crops to the school districts of
New Mexico;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE
STATE OF NEW MEXICO that it be committed to turn back the
rising tide of poor diet by having additional fresh fruits
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and vegetables served in school meals to every New Mexico
student and to strengthening our farming communities and
increasing farmers' incomes by purchasing fruits and
vegetables, when available, from New Mexico farmers; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that it request that the school
districts and their respective boards of education and
superintendents place great emphasis on, and make a high
priority as a matter of educational policy for, the purchase
of locally grown foods in their school food programs for the
benefit of their students; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that it encourage the food
service directors of New Mexico school districts to search
out in their various locales, with the assistance of the New
Mexico department of agriculture and farm to table, local
farmers who want to supply locally grown foods for school
food programs; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that it encourage the sending of
copies of the New Mexico farm to school directory to all
school food service directors; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be
transmitted to all New Mexico school districts.