Latest News for School Nutrition Programs

Proposed Rule to Revise Meal Patterns Consistent With 2020 Dietary Guidelines

Published: 27 days ago
" On February 3, 2023, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Food and Nutrition Service (FNS), released the Proposed Rule Child Nutrition Programs: Revision to Meal Patterns Consistent With the 2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Contracting Entities in the Child Nutrition Programs are encouraged to comment on the Proposed Rule by April 10, 2023.
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On February 3, 2023, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Food and Nutrition Service (FNS), released the Proposed Rule Child Nutrition Programs: Revision to Meal Patterns Consistent With the 2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans.

The proposed rule reflects long-term nutrition standards for National School Lunch Program (NSLP), School Breakfast Program (SBP), and NSLP Afterschool Snacks which are based on the Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2020–2025. Items addressed in the proposed rule include:

-- Limits on added sugars for grain-based desserts, breakfast cereals, yogurts, and flavored milks in school year 2025–26; then establishing overall average weekly limits beginning SY 2027–28.

-- Proposed options for flavored milk requirements

-- Options for whole grain-rich requirements

-- Continued gradual reduction of sodium limits for both breakfast and lunch over several school years

-- Crediting of nuts and seeds as a meat/meat alternate component

-- Professional Standards flexibilities

-- Updates to Buy American provisions

-- Adding hummus to the list of Smart Snacks

-- Alignment of NSLP Afterschool Snacks standards with the CACFP snack standards

USDA is welcoming public comments on this proposed rule (full text at:
https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2023/02/07/2023-02102/child-nutrition-programs-revisions-to-meal-patterns-consistent-with-the-2020-dietary-guidelines-for) from February 7, 2023, through April 10, 2023. Comments may be submitted by one of the following methods:

-- Online on the Regulations.gov web page
(https://www.regulations.gov/) or

-- By mail to School Meals Policy Division, Food and Nutrition Service, P.O. Box 9233, Reston, Virginia, 20195

Note that a Final Rule is not scheduled for release until 2024, after all public comments have been analyzed and incorporated. It is subject to change based on the comments received.

USDA has developed several resources to help states and CEs digest the proposed rule and understand the timeline:

-- School Meals Standards Comparison Chart
(https://www.fns.usda.gov/cn/school-meal-standards-comparison-chart) provides a side-by-side comparison of the current standards and the proposed standards

-- Proposed Implementation Timeline for Updating School Meal Standards Infographic
(https://www.fns.usda.gov/cn/proposed-timeline-updating-school-meal-standards)

 

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Program information may be made available in languages other than English. Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication to obtain program information (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, American Sign Language), should contact the responsible state or local agency that administers the program or USDA’s TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TTY) or contact USDA through the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339.

To file a program discrimination complaint, a Complainant should complete a Form AD-3027, USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form which can be obtained online at: https://www.usda.gov/sites/default/files/documents/USDA-OASCR%20P-Complaint-Form-0508-0002-508-11-28-17Fax2Mail.pdf, from any USDA office, by calling (866) 632-9992, or by writing a letter addressed to USDA. The letter must contain the complainant’s name, address, telephone number, and a written description of the alleged discriminatory action in sufficient detail to inform the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights (ASCR) about the nature and date of an alleged civil rights violation. The completed AD-3027 form or letter must be submitted to USDA by:

1. Mail:
U.S. Department of Agriculture
Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights
1400 Independence Avenue, SW
Washington, D.C. 20250-9410; or
2. Fax: (833) 256-1665 or (202) 690-7442; or
 
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