Wyoming

U.S. Department of Agriculture Under Secretary Eric Bost has accepted an invitation to speak April 27 in Jackson at a regional conference on nutrition, physical activity and body image.

Bost, who has been the undersecretary for USDA's Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services since 2001, will speak at 3:15 p.m. at the Snow King Resort. The conference runs from April 27 to 29.

"With the new food guidance system released just this morning, we anticipate that Mr. Bost will speak about this important educational tool as well as the national challenges of poor nutrition and physical inactivity and how they relate to obesity and people who are overweight," said Mary Kay Wardlaw, a nutrition education specialist with the University of Wyoming's Cooperative Extension Service.

Bost will be a featured speaker at the third annual conference, which is titled "Shaping a Healthy Future III: A Rocky Mountain Conference on Weight Realities."

The Wyoming Dietetic Association and Wellness IN Wyoming are hosting the conference. WIN Wyoming is coordinated through the Department of Family and Consumer Sciences in the UW College of Agriculture, and its goal is to educate people to respect body-size diversity and to enjoy the benefits of active living, pleasurable and healthful eating and positive self-image.

Nutrition experts from across the country will address food and eating, physical activity and body image and how they influence weight and health.

Wardlaw said that Bost is responsible for the administration of 15 USDA nutrition assistance programs having a combined budget of more than $52 billion. Among them is the Food Stamp Program, the Special Supplemental Feeding Program for Women, Infants and Children, and the National School Lunch and School Breakfast programs.

"Under his leadership, USDA delivered $23.4 billion in benefits in 2004 while achieving the highest level of food stamp payment accuracy in history," Wardlaw said. "He also has responsibility for the development of federal nutrition policy and guidance for the general public."

During Bost's tenure, she added, "Significant progress has been made toward meeting agency goals of combating obesity and helping needy families and individuals secure a nutritious diet."

To learn more about the conference, click on its website at: http://outreach.uwyo.edu/conferences/HealthyFutures/home.html.

Date: 4/21/05