Recent increases in child obesity have sparked concerns about competitive foods (CF) -- foods sold to students in school that are not part of federally reimbursable school meals. The nutritional value of these foods is unregulated, & students can purchase these foods in addition to or instead of school meals. This report provides info. from two nationally representative surveys about the prevalence of CF in schools, CF restrictions & groups involved in their sale, & the amounts & uses of revenue generated from the sale of CF. It also provides info. about strategies schools have used to limit the availability of less nutritious CF, based on visits to 6 school districts in Calif., Conn., Mississippi, Missouri, & South Carolina. Charts & tables.
The National School Lunch and School Breakfast Programs, administered by the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), are key components of the nation's food security safety net, providing free or low-cost meals to millions of schoolchildren each day. To qualify their children each year for free or reduced-price meals, many families must submit applications that school officials distribute and review. To reduce this burden on families and schools and to encourage more children to partake of nutritious meals, USDA regulations allow school districts to operate their meals programs under special provisions that eliminate the application process and other administrative procedures in exchange for providing free meals to all students enrolled in one or more school in a district. FNS asked the National Academies' Committee on National Statistics and Food and Nutrition Board to convene a panel of experts to investigate the technical and operational feasibility of using data from the continuous American Community Survey (ACS) to estimate students eligible for free and reduced-price meals for schools and school districts. The ACS eligibility estimates would be used to develop "claiming percentages" that, if sufficiently accurate, would determine the USDA reimbursements to districts for schools that provided free meals to all students under a new special provision that eliminated the ongoing base-year requirements of current provisions. Using American Community Survey Data to Expand Access to the School Meals Program was conducted in two phases. It first issued an interim report (National Research Council, 2010), describing its planned approach for assessing the utility of ACS-based estimates for a special provision to expand access to free school meals. This report is the final phase which presents the panel's findings and recommendations.
In FY 2008, 31 million children participated in the Nat. School Lunch Program and 10 million children participated in the School Breakfast Program each school day. The majority of school meals are provided for free or at a reduced price to low-income students. Some states and school districts have chosen to implement programs that eliminate the reduced-price fee (known as ERP programs) and instead provide free meals to students eligible for the reduced fee. This report provides info. on: (1) what is known about the states and districts that have eliminated the reduced-price fee for school meals; (2) the experiences of states and districts that have ERP programs; and (3) the factors that may help or hinder the estab. or continuation of ERP programs.
Author: United States. Congress. House. Committee on Appropriations. Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies
Food choices and eating habits are learned from many sources. The school environment plays a significant role in teaching and modeling health behaviors. For some children, foods consumed at school can provide a major portion of their daily nutrient intake. Foods and beverages consumed at school can come from two major sources: (1) Federally funded programs that include the National School Lunch Program (NSLP), the School Breakfast Program (SBP), and after-school snacks and (2) competitive sources that include vending machines, "a la carte" sales in the school cafeteria, or school stores and snack bars. Foods and beverages sold at school outside of the federally reimbursable school nutrition programs are referred to as "competitive foods" because they compete with the traditional school lunch as a nutrition source. There are important concerns about the contribution of nutrients and total calories from competitive foods to the daily diets of school-age children and adolescents. Nutrition Standards for Foods in Schools offers both reviews and recommendations about appropriate nutrition standards and guidance for the sale, content, and consumption of foods and beverages at school, with attention given to foods and beverages offered in competition with federally reimbursable meals and snacks. It is sure to be an invaluable resource to parents, federal and state government agencies, educators and schools, health care professionals, food manufacturers, industry trade groups, media, and those involved in consumer advocacy.
The National School Lunch Program and the School Breakfast Program, administered by the Food and Nutrition Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), are key components of the nation's food security safety net, providing free or low-cost meals to millions of school-age children each day. Under the most commonly adopted provisions, USDA reimburses districts for meals served on the basis of data collected in a "base year," during which applications are taken. After 3 or 4 years, applications must be taken again to establish new base-year data, unless the district provides evidence that local conditions have not changed. A special provision that does not require applications to be taken every few years would reduce burden, be more attractive to school districts, and potentially increase student participation by expanding access to free meals. To support the development of such a provision, the Food and Nutrition Service asked the National Academies to study the technical and operational issues that arise in using data from the American Community Survey (ACS)-a new continuous survey replacing the long-form survey of the decennial census-to obtain estimates of students who are eligible for free and reduced-price meals for schools and school districts. Such estimates would be used to develop "claiming percentages" that, if sufficiently accurate, would determine federal reimbursements to districts for the schools that provide free meals to all students under a new special provision that eliminates the base-year requirements of current provisions.
This valuable resource for dietetic educators, community health and public health professionals is also an essential tool for school districts and state departments of education. With chapters prepared by recognized child nutrition practitioners and academic leaders, this publication addresses the strategic needs of child nutrition programs today. The Second Edition has been fully updated to reflect changes in legislation and school nutrition programs. This resource addressses the latest issues in the school nutrition environment such as a school's responsibility to curb student obesity, school board policy and the sale of non-nutritious foods, and the need for collaboration to balance healthy eating and physical activity. Managing Child Nutrition Programs, Second Edition offers updated competency statements for school nutrition directors, managers and food service assistants.