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Updated Guidance on Substituting Vegetables for Fruit at Breakfast

Published: yesterday
" USDA has released a new Question & Answer document designed to explain the optional provision that continues to allow the substitution of vegetables for fruits at breakfast, per the 2024 Final Rule, Meal Patterns Consistent With the 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. These flexibilities provide schools with greater menu planning flexibility at breakfast as compared to the previous regulations and provide a straightforward approach to support children’s health and help students consume a variety of vegetables.
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USDA has released a new Question & Answer document designed to explain the optional provision that continues to allow the substitution of vegetables for fruits at breakfast, per the 2024 Final Rule, Meal Patterns Consistent With the 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. These flexibilities provide schools with greater menu planning flexibility at breakfast as compared to the previous regulations and provide a straightforward approach to support children’s health and help students consume a variety of vegetables. 

Starting in school year (SY) 2025-2026:

•    Schools choosing to offer vegetables at breakfast in place of fruits one day per week may offer vegetables from any vegetable subgroup.
•    Schools choosing to offer vegetables at breakfast in place of fruits on two or more days per week must offer vegetables from at least two different vegetable subgroups over the course of the week.

However, in SY 2024-2025, per the March 9, 2024, Appropriations Act, Congress provided that school food authorities (SFAs) participating in the School Breakfast Program may credit any vegetable offered in place of fruit without including vegetable subgroup variety. This provision is effective only for SY 2024-2025 and restricts USDA from enforcing the vegetable variety requirements at breakfast. However, to expose children to the nutrients that come from a variety of vegetables, USDA continues to encourage Program operators to include a variety of vegetables at breakfast.

For more information, please reference the new Q&A resource created by USDA.

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