Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake Central Schools tried to implement the school lunch program nutrition guidelines promoted by Michelle Obama  as part of her anti-obesity campaign, but students voted with their stomachs, refused to buy the lunches, and the school system lost money.

Now the school system is cutting its losses. HT to The Daily Caller.

Here’s part of their official press release.

BH-BL leaving National School Lunch Program

“You can lead a horse to water but you can’t make it drink.”

No one knows the wisdom of this old saying better than someone who prepares lunches for hundreds of school children. And given the pages of new regulations that took effect September 2012 in the , school lunch managers everywhere would probably also agree that “You can offer nutritious, healthy foods, but you can’t make kids eat them or like them.”

In fact, problems with the new lunch regulations have caused the Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake Board of Education to vote to leave the National School Lunch Program starting in September 2013.

Hungry, frustrated children plus lost income

After discussing the issue several times and examining a year’s worth of data, in June members of the school board unanimously agreed that BH-BL food service manager Nicky Boehm could likely do a better job of providing lunches in the district’s five schools if she were no longer burdened with the regulations that come with participation in the National School Lunch Program (NSLP).

A letter is being mailed to all BH-BL parents about this and other changes in the lunch program. Parents will have 60 days to share their comments with the district before the change takes effect with the opening of school in September. However, assistant superintendent Chris Abdoo believes most parents will be pleased with the change and pleased to see the return of some favorite food items and some larger portion sizes in September.

“Ms. Boehm and her staff worked hard to implement the new regulations, but there were just too many problems and too many foods that students did not like and would not purchase,” Abdoo says. “Students complained of being hungry with these lunches and the district lost money. I’m confident we can do better on our own next year.”

These images were featured in the newsletter: