Pizza is widely considered as a junk food but the US House of Representatives considered it as a vegetable, allowing it to continue to be among the lunch options in schools.

The House voted 298-121 to pass the bill that abandoned proposals that aimed at erasing pizza and French fries from the lunch menus of the federally funded schools.

According to the bill that was signed by President Obama into a law on Friday, a slice of pizza spread with two tablespoons of tomato paste should be considered as vegetable.

The American Frozen Food Institute (AFFI) welcomed the move.

Speaking on the topic, AFFI spokesman Corey Henry said, "It's an important victory. Our concern is that the standards would force companies to change their products in a way that would make them unpalatable to students."

It may be noted here that many members of the AFFI are manufacturers of frozen pizzas. The AFFI is, in fact, the parent organization of the National Frozen Pizza Association.

But, anti-obesity campaigners, who wanted pizza and French fries to be removed from the federally funded schools' lunch menus, criticized the move.

Obesity among school children is a major concern in the US. Anti-obesity campaigners believe that consumption of fast foods like Pizza and French Fries is responsible for the problem.