URGENT ACTION NEEDED: Tell the USDA to support healthy, plant-based school meals for K-12 students!  

Many cash-strapped schools do not have the resources they need to provide sufficient school meal options for all students. Many students prefer or require plant-based meal options due to their concerns for animal welfare, climate change, religious beliefs, or health reasons. Sadly, for some of these students, school lunches are their only meal for the day! Students have reported being left with nothing but nut butter and jelly, or even just an apple to eat.  

Young people are going hungry every day. That’s why this is so URGENT, Friend. Please help us reach our goal of 5,282 more signatures by 11:59pm TONIGHT and tell the U.S. Department of Agriculture to ensure plant-based options on school menus for K-12 students!

It’s not just the health of future generations in question, Friend. It’s also the health of our entire planet. Food production contributes around one-third of climate-warming emissions and the BILLIONS of school meals served every year are an enormous contributor. School menus are dominated by animal products, which create far more emissions compared to plant-based foods. In fact, beef burgers have 50x the carbon footprint of black bean burgers! 

Many young people are aware of the impacts that climate change will have on their future. That’s part of why so many students are asking for plant-based options. But many schools don’t have the resources to provide those climate-friendly options. Our research in California found that ONE THIRD of schools did not regularly offer a plant-based meal beyond nut butter and jelly. The USDA can help change that. Will you help ensure public school students don’t go hungry and offer support for plant-based meal options?

Standing with you, 
Chloë Waterman 
Climate-friendly food senior program manager, 
Friends of the Earth