Congressional Republicans want to withdraw the proposed dietary guidelines from a government advisory panel that requires Americans to consider the environment when deciding what to eat.

After every five years, the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee comes up with the dietary guidelines and informs about everything from school lunches and food packaging labels. These guidelines always have been subject to intense lobbying by food industries. However, this year's version has begun an unprecedented political debate.

The advisory panel also suggested a tax on sugary drinks and snacks so that people can eat better. However, this has angered beverage companies and conservatives in Congress.

Based on the advisory committee's February recommendations, the departments of Agriculture and Health and Human Services are expected to issue a final version by year's end.

According to House and Senate spending bills, the guidelines must only restrict to nutrition and diet. Two spending bills in the House would place a new threshold for the science that can be used in setting the guidelines.

One of the bills was approved by a spending subcommittee last week while the other was approved by the House Appropriations Committee Wednesday. An amendment to strike the dietary guidelines language from the bill was offered by Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn. However, it was rejected.

The recommendation that a more plant-based diet is better for the environment is based on science rated 'moderate' in the report. This means that there's a strong body of scientific evidence to support the recommendation.