The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), in coordination with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), announced today that the fifth meeting of the 2020 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee, originally scheduled to be held in Washington, DC, later this week, will move to an online-only format out of an abundance of caution in response to travel restrictions imposed by some of the members' employers. There will be no changes to the timing or content of the meeting, and the public will still be able to view the discussions online.
The meeting will be held on Thursday, March 12, 2020 and Friday, March 13, 2020, from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., EDT. For more information on the meeting, and to access the links to view online, please visit www.DietaryGuidelines.gov. As previously announced, the meeting will include presentations by each subcommittee, deliberation by the full committee, and discussion of the committee’s plans to finalize its work. This will be the final meeting before the committee publicly shares their draft report, scheduled for May 11, also online.
The Dietary Guidelines for Americans serves as the cornerstone of federal nutrition programs and policies, providing food-based recommendations that help prevent diet-related chronic diseases and promote overall health. According to the National Nutrition Monitoring and Related Research Act of 1990, the guidelines are mandated to reflect the preponderance of scientific evidence and are published jointly by USDA and HHS every five years.
USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) administers 15 nutrition assistance programs that leverage American’s agricultural abundance to ensure children and low-income individuals and families have nutritious food to eat. FNS co-develops the Dietary Guidelines for Americans with the HHS Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion.
