Action Alert: Stop Dairy Industry from Invading New York Schools

Can you help us stop the dairy industry from pushing high-fat dairy products in New York schools?  Given the skyrocketing childhood obesity and diabetes rates in the United States, it is urgent that we act now. And we need your help.

As part of New York's 2006 Ag Literacy Day on March 20, volunteers will visit New York state elementary children and read the book Extra Cheese Please!: Mozzarella’s Journey from Cow to Pizza. This story ends with a girl enjoying a slice of cheese pizza and includes a recipe for the fat-laden snack. 

Dairy products are New York state's leading agricultural commodity, and the state is trying to boost the dairy industry's profits by encouraging children to eat more cheese. However, 28 percent of New York adolescents were overweight or at risk of becoming overweight in 2004, according to the New York Department of Health. The state of New York should not be encouraging children to eat more cheese, which is loaded with fat, saturated fat, and cholesterol.

Many unhealthy eating habits are established in childhood, so it's very important that schools play a role in promoting good nutrition to students. New York Agriculture in the Classroom, the sponsor of Ag Literacy Day, should focus on healthy, nutritious New York commodities such as apples, grapes, melons, and butternut squash.

Help us by asking New York Gov. George Pataki to demand that New York Agriculture in the Classroom choose another book to read on March 20.

Contact Gov. Pataki:
Governor George E. Pataki
State Capitol
Albany, NY 12224
518-474-8390

posted 3/1/06

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