Bill Would Repeal Calorie Limits on School Lunches

GOP Rep. Steve King calls limits a "Nanny State" move

Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) has introduced legislation that would repeal a U.S. Department of Agriculture rule that puts a cap on the number of calories in school lunches served to children.

King's No Hungry Kids Act, H.R. 6418, would eliminate new USDA guidelines that say children in kindergarten through fifth grade can be served meals containing up to 650 calories, while meals for sixth through eighth graders can have 700 calories, and meals for high schoolers can have 850 calories.

"For the first time in history, the USDA has set a calorie limit on school lunches," King said last week. "The goal of the school lunch program was — and is — to insure students receive enough nutrition to be healthy and to learn.