WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack thinks everything is going just fine with the ratcheting regulations on school food in recent years.

Sure, there’s been few schools that have had problems getting students to eat food prepared under the strict restrictions on calories, fat, sugar, sodium and other elements imposed by the federal government and championed by first lady Michelle Obama, Vilsack told about 100 people at the Center for American Progress yesterday.

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But that’s no reason to step back the Healthy Hunger Free Kids Act of 2010 when lawmakers return from summer recess this month, he said.

In fact, Vilsack is calling on Congress to increase the prescriptive regulations on school food, The Hill reports.

“This is an important opportunity for the country to reinforce the good work that was done in 2010, to expand on it, to solidify it, to institutionalize it and strengthen it,” he said. “I’m here to encourage Congress to get to work. Don’t take a step back. Let’s take steps forward.”

Vilsack’s comments ignore a growing movement of students, parents, school food service directors, administrators, lawmakers and taxpayers urging Congress to reduce or eliminate Michelle Obama’s “healthy” food regulations for a lot of different reasons.

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The first round of regulations went into effect in 2012 and students instantly revolted. They staged protests, created parody YouTube videos, and launched a #thanksmichelleobama Twitter hashtag to post with images of their disgusting lunches.

More than 1.2 million fewer students are eating school lunches than when the changes went into effect, reversing a years-long trend of increasing enrollment.

Regulations that force students to take a fruit or vegetable with every meal have also generated a $1 billion increase in cafeteria waste nationwide, though some schools have found creative ways to recycle the leftovers – by feeding it to nearby pig farms, or incorporating it into school composting programs.

Hundreds of schools across the country have also opted to drop out of the National School Lunch Program altogether, because lunch revenues have plummeted so badly under the new regulations that it makes more sense to give up the government subsidy for the program to serve students food they’ll actually buy and eat.

Some schools have also dropped out over concerns that the very small portions prescribed by the government regulations do not provide enough energy for student athletes, or other hungry high-schoolers.

“A survey released by the School Nutrition Association last week found that 70 percent of meal program operators nationwide have been hurt financially by the new mandate, and about 60 percent estimated school lunch participation has fallen under the new standards,” the Great Falls Tribune reports.

The SNA, which represents the nation’s school food directors, has been lobbying lawmakers for years to relax the regulations.

Also last week, researchers at the University of Vermont unveiled a study that showed students are taking more fruits and vegetables than before, but are eating less.

Vilsack, of course, pointed to other studies that showed an increase in consumption in some schools. He’s also alleging that 95 percent of schools are doing great with Michelle Obama’s “healthy” changes.

And even if they’re not doing so great, he said, the government has lots of tax money to make everything better.

From The Hill:

Vilsack said he understands that some schools are still struggling to meet the standards, adding that it’s why USDA is encouraging states to take advantage of the $28.2 million that’s still available to help school districts implement the law.

“About $90 million was originally appropriated and about five years later $28.2 million is still unused,” he said. “Before people start criticizing, we ought to have the resources available and be fully utilizing them.”

Students, meanwhile, are continuing their #thanksmichelleobama campaign, and the images are truly disturbing.