7-21 FB Potatoes in WIC

 Does the Obama Administration think that potatoes are not nutritious? You could take that stance if you heard about the Women, Infants and Children program. I’m David Sparks and I’ll be right back. The Idaho Statesman reported that for years, Idaho potato growers and distributors have been angered by a USDA restriction on including potatoes in a  federal food program. And Idaho lawmakers' effort to include potatoes in the Women, Infants and Children program, or WIC, went nowhere two years ago.

Republican Sens. Mike Crapo and James Risch this month joined a bipartisan group of 19 senators who asked Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack to include potatoes, the only vegetable barred from the program for low-income families. Here’s Crapo spokesman Linsay Nothern: “You’ve heard this for a number of years now that potatoes haven’t been included because they’re already accessible and people already eat them. That doesn’t mean they shouldn’t be listed if folks are looking for nutrition, this is a program that deals with nutrition we should have potatoes in there. Potatoes are an excellent source of fiber, potassium and vitamin C.