Updated School Meal Standards: working towards a common goal of healthy children and helping them reach their full potential.
School meals will continue to include fruits and vegetables, emphasize whole grains, and give kids the right balance of nutrients for healthy, tasty meals. For the first time, schools will focus on products with less added sugar, especially in school breakfast.
School nutrition professionals continue to make school meals the healthiest meals children eat in a day! To take school meals to the next level, USDA is updating the school nutrition standards after considering recommendations from the most recent Dietary Guidelines for Americans and listening to a diverse range of voices with experience in child nutrition and health.
By law, certain adults without dependents can only receive SNAP benefits beyond three months in a three-year period unless they meet specific work requirements. We refer to this as the “time limit.”
Healthy Eating Index scores range from 0 to 100 and are a measure of diet quality used to assess how well a set of foods aligns with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. A higher score is ideal. The FDPIR Food Package scores an 84. This is higher than the average U.S. diet, which scores a 59.
FNS monitors SNAP-authorized retailers and transaction data and investigates potential concerns as illustrated in this SNAP infographic highlighting retailer compliance.
Infographic explaining improper payments in the SNAP program.
SNAP healthy incentive programs encourage healthy eating by making nutritious food more accessible and affordable through coupons, discounts, gift cards, bonus items, or extra funds.
Infographic for food safety in schools.
The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 requires USDA to establish nutrition standards for all foods sold in schools — beyond the federally supported meals programs. This new rule carefully balances science-based nutrition guidelines with practical and flexible solutions to promote healthier eating on campus.