Once upon a time, it was your Mother who said, "Eat your peas." Now it's the feds.

Current law says the U.S. Department of Agriculture — not Mom or Dad — knows what's best for kids to eat for lunch.

USDA guidelines require child-care facilities to provide lunches consisting of meat, a serving of grain, and two servings of fruit and veggies. If Mom packs your lunch and it doesn't meet those guidelines, child-care workers on the scene must serve up additional food.

This outrageous extension of the Nanny State came to light in North Carolina in January when a preschooler's home-packed lunch came up for inspection. A zealous child-care worker, obviously familiar with the regulations, found that Mom had packed a turkey and cheese sandwich, banana, potato chips and apple juice.

Sound yummy?

Not to the Lunch Box Police. Off to the cafeteria went the kid for a serving of, get this — chicken nuggets.

The penalty for parents? A$1.25 lunch bill.

North Carolina lawmakers now have the opportunity to right this ridiculous example of government intrusion into the lives of free men, women and children across this state.

House Bill 503, now working its way through the General Assembly, creates an exception to the USDA guidelines for parents and guardians who pack lunches for their kids. According to a news release from Sen. Phil Berger's office, "the bill ensures that child-care facilities are not penalized for parental choices by prohibiting state agencies from evaluating the nutritional value or adequacy of home-packed lunches."

Amen!

The bill unanimously passed the Senate and has been returned to the House for another vote.

While it's true that some parents don't take their child-rearing seriously, this intrusion goes way too far. No one with sound mind wants a child to go hungry or be under-nourished, but requiring child-care workers to police home-packed lunch boxes removes the focus from teaching and caring and wrongly places it on policing.

If a child-care worker sees that a youngster is hungry, it's good judgment to step in, but it's bad judgment to supersede the lunch selection of a parent or guardian unless there's a red flag. Daily Snickers-and-Coke lunches from home should mean a conference with the parent. A turkey and cheese sandwich trumps chicken nuggets any day when it comes to a healthy choice.

The more government steps into the lives of individuals, the more individuals relinquish their own freedom and the Nanny State grows and grows. Lunch Box Police today; Sugar Patrol tomorrow.

Don't believe it? Look at what's happening in New York with Mayor Bloomberg's edict on soft drinks and in Washington with the First Lady's healthy eating initiatives.

The target is off tobacco and now on sugar.

North Carolina lawmakers have an opportunity to put some sense into the lives of parents, kids and child-care workers by calling off the Lunch Box Police.

We call on legislators representing Craven, Jones and Pamlico counties to vote for the bill that ends this intrusive attempt by the federal government to control the lives of citizens and return decisions about a child's eating to its rightful place - with parents and guardians.

REPRINTED FROM THE NEW BERN SUN JOURNAL