Sen. Murray backs inclusion of potatoes in WIC update
Washington Senator Patty Murray is among 12 US senators who have signed a letter to Secretary of Agriculture Mike Johanns urging inclusion of potatoes in the reauthorization of the Women, Infants and Children (WIC) Program.
“We support the U.S. Department of Agriculture's effort to update WIC to include more fruits and vegetables,” the letter states. “Updating the WIC package was an important goal of the 2003 Child Nutrition reauthorization -- increasing the number of fruits and vegetables in WIC will not only help supply important nutrients to participants, but also bring WIC more in line with scientific findings on their importance in our diet.”
As part of this process, the Institute of Medicine issued a report, WIC Food Packages: Time for a Change. The report included many positive comments on the importance of expanding WIC to include fruits and vegetables. However, one recommendation would exclude white potatoes from WIC despite the fact that they are an excellent source of potassium, fiber, vitamin C and many B vitamins.
“We find this recommendation troubling because it is in sharp contradiction to the report's nutritional findings,” the senators write. “It would be nonsensical for USDA to exclude from the final WIC package a vegetable that contains at least four of the vitamins that are inadequate in the American diet.”
“We appreciate the leadership and support of Senator Murray and the others,” said Washington State Potato Commission Executive Director Chris Voigt. “Potatoes are so often a misunderstood vegetable in terms of their nutritional value. We thank Sen. Murray for bringing these facts to Sec. Johanns’s attention and hope he will heed her advice.”
The group also noted that excluding white potatoes will only create administrative burdens for participating grocers and vendors.
The letter concludes, “As USDA finalizes the WIC update, we urge you to give proper consideration to potato nutrition facts. As a healthy, low-cost convenient food, the nutritive value of the potato is too healthy to ignore as a part of the diet of children and mothers.”
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Karen Bonaudi
Assistant Executive Director
Washington State Potato Commission
108 Interlake Road
Moses Lake WA 98837
509.765.8845 phone
509.765.4853 fax
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