FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Nate Beeler
Director, Communications & Marketing
Children’s Hunger Alliance
614-643-8051
nbeeler@childrenshungeralliance.org
Bicameral Bills Promote Lifelong Healthy Eating for Children
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Millions of children have been receiving inadequate nutrition education because Ohio lacks nutrition education standards. Two new bills in the statehouse aim to change that by setting statewide food literacy standards that can set children up for a lifetime of healthier eating habits.
The bipartisan legislation, introduced last Thursday in the House and Tuesday in the Senate, will allow and require the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce (DEW) to develop food literacy standards within one year of the bill’s effective date. Informed by proven state and national frameworks, these standards will help schools equip students with practical food knowledge, enabling them to make healthy food choices. This goes beyond basic nutrition education to include developing students’ understanding of how food is grown and teaching basic meal preparation skills.
H.B. 907 is sponsored by Reps. Dontavius L. Jarrells (D-District 1) and Kevin Ritter (R-District 94), and S.B. 442 is sponsored by State Sens. Michelle Reynolds (R-District 3) and Kent Smith (D-District 21), with endorsement from Children’s Hunger Alliance (CHA) and other child advocacy groups.
“As a legislator, I believe one of the greatest investments we can make is teaching our children how to care for their health from the very beginning,” said Reynolds. “Food literacy is more than nutrition; it is about giving students the knowledge to make informed choices, understand where food comes from, and build lifelong habits that strengthen families and communities. By introducing food literacy standards in our schools, we are empowering the next generation with practical life skills that support both personal wellness and Ohio’s future.”
The state legislation comes amid a national push to improve health and nutrition in the U.S.
“In the era of Making America Healthy Again, I think it is important that we set nutritional standards for young people to follow,” said Ritter. “This is a good first step in that direction.”
Adoption of the standards will be voluntary for local school districts, but DEW and school districts will be required to make the guidelines publicly available. This transparency ensures students and families can easily learn the best practices for building healthy eating habits.
“We are grateful that Senators Reynolds and Smith and Representatives Jarrells and Ritter are taking action on food literacy, because we know that when food education is delivered alongside nutritious meals, children are less hungry and more able to focus and reach their full potential,” said Michelle M. Brown, CHA President and CEO. “No child should have to worry about having enough food to eat.”
In Ohio, over half a million children — one in five kids — are living with food insecurity, meaning they don’t have access to enough food to thrive. CHA currently provides nutritious meals to nearly a quarter of these children and is expanding its Nutrition Education program to support children with food literacy skills throughout their K-12 education, setting them up for a lifetime of healthier eating.
The House and Senate education committees will begin consideration of the bills soon, with the hope of public testimony in June. Ohioans can find and contact their state representative and senator at https://www.legislature.ohio.gov/members/district-maps to urge them to support the bills’ passage.
About Children’s Hunger Alliance
Since 1970, CHA has been leading the charge to end childhood hunger in Ohio, providing nutritious meals and food education to children right where they are, every day of the year. CHA is the largest comprehensive statewide organization focused solely on children’s food security and nutrition education. In 2025, CHA provided 10.1 million meals to 125,000 children while partnering with nearly 1,600 sites across 74 counties.
For more information, please visit www.chaohio.org. Connect with us on LinkedIn (@chaohio), Instagram (@childrenshungeralliance), and Facebook (@chaohio).
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