KNOW YOUR FOOD, SHARE YOUR PROGRAM

BY KADIE HAUG, 2021-2023 SNA-WI EDUCATION COMMITTEE CHAIR

By now you have heard about the USDA proposed updates to school nutrition standards. Including changes like: new sugar standards for school breakfast and lunch programs, reducing sodium limits in school meals, addressing long-term milk and whole grain standards, as well as strengthening the Buy American provision, and various other changes to school meal requirements and program regulations. You likely reviewed the proposed rule in detail and established an opinion one way or the other. For many, this included submitting feedback during the open comment period in hopes to help steer the outcome of the final rule. But there is more than one way for school nutrition professionals to advocate for our programs and it can be done all year long, not limited to a 90day comment period. In fact, school nutrition professionals should share with the public the continuous work that is done on a daily basis to provide the healthy meals that are served in our schools.

The proposed rule for updating the school nutrition standards to better follow the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, which points out that “most kids are consuming too much sugar, sodium, and saturated fat, and not enough fruits, vegetables, and whole grains” (2023) on the surface, is difficult to challenge. Most can agree with and support an idea of doing what is best and healthy for kids. However, as school nutrition professionals, we know that the meals we already serve in our schools are healthy. In many cases, these are the healthiest meals some students receive in a day. “Research shows that students who participate in school meal programs consume more whole grains, milk, fruits, and vegetables during meal times and have better overall diet quality, than nonparticipants'' (School Meals, 2022). That said, many school nutrition programs don’t stop there. Work is constantly being done to continue to improve the meals we serve in our programs and to teach students the importance of healthy eating.

At the School District of La Crosse, we have school gardens, incorporate the Farm to School program, and work with local farmers to provide fresh produce and local beef options to students. These provide both an opportunity to support local farmers, and also to get students involved and help teach them the importance of knowing where their food comes from. It is commonly stated that when people can connect where their food comes from and are a part of the process, they are more inclined to consume it. Often, these local, gardengrown products are more nutritious and encourage healthier eating habits. There are various ways to get kids involved, including through implementing school gardens and/or the use of hydroponic growing systems in the classroom. In addition to continuously working more local, farm-raised products into our program, we also recently set up an account with the Life Time Foundation to work with Green Onion, an online tool that analyzes products for ingredients of concern based on the Ingredient Guide for Better School Food Purchasing. For the number of products served in schools that cannot be brought in from a local farm, or cultivated in a school garden or classroom, this program helps districts identify concerning ingredients (artificial flavors, colors, etc.) within those products, as well as to help find cleaner, more nutritious replacement options. This foundation supports the idea of serving the cleanest, most nutritious products in schools, and, in turn, has developed Green Onion to be available to help schools and product manufacturers achieve this. These details, the below surface-level facts that we know we are doing to make school meals even better, are what needs to get shared in our communities. People and groups cannot support what they don’t know.

There are a variety of resources and tools out there to help analyze and support school nutrition programs, but our greatest device for gaining support for our programs

is us. Keep providing nutritious meals to students and encouraging their involvement in the process. Continue to work with, and increase, the number of farmers and local food sources that you can. Seek out the tools and resources available to you that will help analyze your products. Share what you are doing within your school nutrition program to the outside world so that when proposed updates to school nutrition standards come up in the future, or questions arise about the quality and nutrition of school foods, communities can stand in support with you during, and outside of, a 90-day comment period.

References:

1. CDC. (2022, October 19). School meals. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved April 25, 2023, from https://www.cdc.gov/ healthyschools/nutrition/schoolmeals.htm#:~:text=School%20 meals%20are%20nutritious.&text=Research%20shows%20 that%20students%20who,overall%20diet%20quality%2C%20 than%20nonparticipants

2. FoodCorps. (2019). Ingredient Guide for Better School Food Purchasing. FoodCorps. Retrieved April 2023, from https:// static1.squarespace.com/static/60ff21516720e75b65dffb27/t/ 613a68e61390dc360c6b7452/1631217896194/Ingredient_ Guide_2021.3.pdf

3. U.S. Department of Agriculture. (2023, March 6). Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Proposed Updates to the School Nutrition Standards. Retrieved April 25, 2023, from https:// www.dietaryguidelines.gov/sites/default/files/2021-03/Dietary_ Guidelines_for_Americans_2020-2025.pdf

KADIE HAUG EDUCATION COMMITTEE CHAIR | KHAUG@LACROSSESD.ORG