Changes coming to school lunch menu
With the passage of a new federal law, there will soon be new, healthier menu offerings for the students in the Wooster City School District.
Dave Kocevar, director of business and community affairs, briefed the board of education on the effects of the passage of the Health, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 during the board’s January meeting.
According to Kocevar, the act, which reauthorizes the federal government’s child nutrition program for another five years, “authorizes the federal government to provide nutrition for our school meal programs and to increase access to healthy foods for low income children,” and provides $4.5 billion in new funding for the program.
The act, which will be implemented after specific deadlines and guidelines are put into the form of regulations by the USDA later this year, authorizes the USDA to set nutritional standards for food sold in schools.
This also increases the amount schools are reimbursed for meals provided to students in the free and reduced lunch programs for the first time in 30 years by adding an additional six cents to the $2.72 schools currently receive. Provisions in the act will also allow districts to use Medicaid data to automatically establish a student’s eligibility for the program, thus making it easier and less stigmatizing for children to participate in the program.
The manager of the food service company utilized by the district was also on hand to provide the board with an update on his company’s efforts to prepare for compliance with the new regulations once they are issued.
According to Don Lewis, Sodexo general manager, the Health, Hunger-Free Kids Act is the first major change in the school breakfast and lunch program in 15 years.
The regulations are expected to not only reduce the amount of sodium in the food served to students but also the number of calories in each school meal.
Lewis noted that under the current law, in order to be eligible for federal funding, each elementary school lunch must contain a minimum of 694 calories. The new law will likely provide a range of 550 to 695 calories, which would allow schools to provide lower calorie offerings to overweight children.
The regulations will also likely include an increase in fruit and vegetable offerings and a move away from starchy vegetables like potatoes, peas, and corn in favor of lower starch offerings such as leafy greens. The shift to low or no fat milk and more whole grain offerings are also expected to be part of the final regulations.
The regulations are also expected to include requirements that the amount of sodium in food served to school children be gradually reduced over the next 10 years.
While regulators would have preferred to implement the reduced sodium standards immediately, the USDA recognizes that food suppliers will need time to adjust sodium levels in pre-prepared foods included in school meals, as was the case with the elimination of trans fats.
Compliance with the regulations will continue a path the district has already started down, thanks in large part to the efforts of a group of local school parents who have encouraged the district to offer healthier meals to students.
“We’ve been moving steadily in this direction,” said Kocevar.
“We’ve been trying to make positive changes over the past couple of years to make sure that we try to offer as large a variety of meal choices as we can to our students and staff as we try to move toward those healthier meal choices,” said Kocevar.
Dave Kocevar, director of business and community affairs, briefed the board of education on the effects of the passage of the Health, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 during the board’s January meeting.
According to Kocevar, the act, which reauthorizes the federal government’s child nutrition program for another five years, “authorizes the federal government to provide nutrition for our school meal programs and to increase access to healthy foods for low income children,” and provides $4.5 billion in new funding for the program.
The act, which will be implemented after specific deadlines and guidelines are put into the form of regulations by the USDA later this year, authorizes the USDA to set nutritional standards for food sold in schools.
This also increases the amount schools are reimbursed for meals provided to students in the free and reduced lunch programs for the first time in 30 years by adding an additional six cents to the $2.72 schools currently receive. Provisions in the act will also allow districts to use Medicaid data to automatically establish a student’s eligibility for the program, thus making it easier and less stigmatizing for children to participate in the program.
The manager of the food service company utilized by the district was also on hand to provide the board with an update on his company’s efforts to prepare for compliance with the new regulations once they are issued.
According to Don Lewis, Sodexo general manager, the Health, Hunger-Free Kids Act is the first major change in the school breakfast and lunch program in 15 years.
The regulations are expected to not only reduce the amount of sodium in the food served to students but also the number of calories in each school meal.
Lewis noted that under the current law, in order to be eligible for federal funding, each elementary school lunch must contain a minimum of 694 calories. The new law will likely provide a range of 550 to 695 calories, which would allow schools to provide lower calorie offerings to overweight children.
The regulations will also likely include an increase in fruit and vegetable offerings and a move away from starchy vegetables like potatoes, peas, and corn in favor of lower starch offerings such as leafy greens. The shift to low or no fat milk and more whole grain offerings are also expected to be part of the final regulations.
The regulations are also expected to include requirements that the amount of sodium in food served to school children be gradually reduced over the next 10 years.
While regulators would have preferred to implement the reduced sodium standards immediately, the USDA recognizes that food suppliers will need time to adjust sodium levels in pre-prepared foods included in school meals, as was the case with the elimination of trans fats.
Compliance with the regulations will continue a path the district has already started down, thanks in large part to the efforts of a group of local school parents who have encouraged the district to offer healthier meals to students.
“We’ve been moving steadily in this direction,” said Kocevar.
“We’ve been trying to make positive changes over the past couple of years to make sure that we try to offer as large a variety of meal choices as we can to our students and staff as we try to move toward those healthier meal choices,” said Kocevar.
Published: February 15, 2011
