Challenges w/ New School Nutrition Standards

[Sally Smyth]

See below -- interesting GAO report on modifying the new School Nutrition Standards.

(Stolen from Kellog Food and Community News Roundup.)

Modifying School Nutrition Standards. The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently released a report on the challenges school districts faced when implementing the new USDA school food nutrition guidelines during the 2012-2013 school year. For example, some schools had to limit popular menu items because of meat and grain limitations which led to negative student responses to the menu changes. The report also notes that student perceptions of the new menus will likely improve over time, if the guidelines are allowed to take course. On the whole, the GAO recommended that the UDA "permanently remove the meat and grain maximum requirements and allow flexibility to help districts comply with the lack of overlap in the calorie ranges for grades 6-8 and 9-13 lunches" (via GAO).