Zimmern Responds To Pawlenty; Obama Improves School Lunches

During his address on the second night of the Republican National Convention in Tampa, Fla., former Minnesota governor Tim Pawlenty made a couple of digs aimed at President Obama. Among the jabs was a food-related quip. Pawlenty said, "The president takes more vacations than the guy on the Bizarre Foods show!"

Andrew Zimmern took to his blog to respond to Pawlenty, writing, "I loved the shout out. It would have been nice if you mentioned my name since we have known each other pretty well for a dozen or so years, but I understand you're being respectful and not making it personal." He also went into detail about how many vacation days he's taken this summer (four in August plus two or three that he plans to take in September).

Meanwhile, this week Obama administration officials shared details about the new school lunch standards being implemented nationwide beginning this year. Agriculture Under Secretary for Food Kevin Concannon told The Hill that these are the first major changes to the school lunch program in 15 years. The new standards will include maximum-calorie guidelines for students based on age and grade, and will emphasize increased servings of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains and smaller amounts of salty and fatty products.