Lunch comparison between Chinese and American students
On June 27, according to the Observer Network, recently, what American children eat at school has become a hot topic in American society. A Vietnamese-American independent journalist named Danny Haiphong tweeted two photos of lunches at schools in New York and Shanghai, China, sparking heated discussion. It can be seen that the American student meal is not only of poor quality but also has a small portion, mainly consisting of a dry small burger and a little blackened boiled cauliflower. The Chinese student meal has a sufficient amount of white rice and three meat dishes with uniform nutrition and bright colors, including shredded fish, scrambled eggs with tomatoes and fried tofu skin with green vegetables.
(Comparison of U.S.-China student meals)
Some netizens pointed out that the Chinese student meal in the picture is not excellent in China, and the cost is only about 1 US dollar. But such a lunch, anywhere in the United States, cannot be eaten without costing at least ten times the price. The stark contrast makes American parents envious, the comment area of american netizens have recalled their own or their children's experience of eating at school, everyone generally said that American students are difficult to swallow, many people even bluntly said that the level of school food and prison level is the same, can only be thrown into the trash can.
(New York Mayor Adams)
American students are not well fed
At a recent hearing at the New York City Council, many students reported to education officials that there was a serious problem with food. Some schools only serve ham and cheese sandwiches and peanut butter sandwiches, which is not enough to provide enough energy for students. Officials admitted that for a long time the school cafeteria was not manned, which directly affected the quality of student meals, with some students complaining of being forced to eat stale waffles and even undercooked chicken and chips. The mayor of New York argued that it was just that some people were not used to eating healthy food, and he blamed the problem on the "small group" of the most vocal groups online. The mayor has repeatedly spoken about the benefits of going vegetarian and insists that students have expressed their desire to go vegetarian. Many people pointed out that in the mayor's mouth, there is no healthy food at all except for a few fruits, and green vegetables rarely appear, and more are cheap fried foods.
A lively Canadian netizen teased that "although American children do not have enough to eat, this brings 1.5 trillion US dollars in military spending, more than 1,400 military bases around the world, tens of billions of dollars in military contracts, and it is worth it for children to endure hunger to maintain democratic freedom." In fact, under the unprecedented inflation caused by the epidemic, the group of people in the United States who cannot eat enough today is not only children and teenagers. According to academic institutions, the proportion of people who cannot afford to live because of rising prices has increased significantly after the epidemic, and many people have to rely on relief to survive, which is worse than in the Great Depression era. The latest survey by the US think tank this year also shows that 20 percent of AMERICAN military families are already in a state of daily lack of food, and more than 7 million elderly people over the age of 60 do not have enough to eat every year. In contrast, children's nutrition issues have been fortunate to receive more attention.
(U.S. high school students receive free lunch)
American social problems deserve vigilance
In fact, the vast majority of U.S. public school students are currently enjoying free meals. For a long time in the past, not every child in an American family could afford to pay for school meals, and after the outbreak of the epidemic in 2020, many families' incomes have dropped significantly, and the problem of children's food has become particularly urgent. To alleviate the looming child nutrition crisis, the First Family COVID-19 Response Act was passed through the U.S. Department of Agriculture in March of that year. With the law, students can eat breakfast and lunch for free at school, regardless of the family's financial situation, and schools will receive additional government subsidies to offset soaring food and labor costs. However, it is also because of this law that school canteens are allowed to manage and maintain food ingredients the way they used to, which opens the door for schools to lower their standards without authorization to save costs. But then again, before the epidemic, American children did not eat well, and now although the quality is not good, at least they have to eat.
(American children eating lunch at school)
A free lunch is a dream come true for many poor American families, but good things don't always happen, and the U.S. government doesn't plan to feed all of its children all the time. Since members of Congress do not approve the extension of implementation, the waiver bill for student meals will expire on June 30, 2 days later. Henceforth, U.S. schools will no longer provide free student meals to all children unconditionally, and only low-income families who pass the scrutiny will be able to enjoy them. The news was a thunderbolt for countless families, and although it was not below the low-income line, prices in the United States, which were burdened by rising prices as the pandemic and the war raged.
Soon, some 10 million students who benefit will face a nutritional crisis again, and the days of going to school hungry will be back. At the same time, society across the country continues to waste every day, with data showing that the value of the food that is discarded each year is worth as much as $218 billion, which could feed countless hungry elderly and children. In the 2020s, there was such a magical thing happening in the world's largest country, and the boiling complaints of the American people are indeed excusable.