The House of Representatives recently passed the Defense Department Appropriations Act with an amendment that said meat will remain an option for members of the military.
The amendment was offered by Nebraska Republican Adrian Smith, and it prohibits the Defense Department from excluding meat in its food service program manual. The U.S. Coast Guard had cut meat consumption among its cadets by ten percent over three years, and that prompted concerns of potential meat cuts among other service branches.
Smith said, “Meat contains vitamins and nutrients not available in a plant-based diet. The amendment is not a mandate or prohibition; it simply says there will be a meat option for our service members each day.” Both the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association and National Pork Producers’ Council applauded Smith’s efforts to make sure anti-meat activists can’t decide what our military can and cannot eat.
Congressman Smith said:
Ideologically-motivated activists are working to take meat off the menu in institutions across the country, and they have included the U.S. military on their list of targets. These restrictions would negatively impact the nutrition and morale of the men and women who protect our nation.
Meat contains vitamins and nutrients not readily available in a plant-based diet. My amendment is not a mandate or a prohibition it simply ensures there is a meat option available to our troops each day.
I am not willing to allow activist groups to tell members of our military, who risk their lives to keep us safe, they cannot enjoy a hamburger or steak on certain days of the week simply to advance an agenda against animal agriculture.
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Source: NAFB News Service, Ag View
