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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.
Comparison table for CEP proposed rule: current requirements vs. proposed changes.
USDA is extending the public comment period on the proposed rule, “Child Nutrition Programs: Revisions to Meal Patterns Consistent With the 2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans,” to May 10, 2023.
Comparison Chart: Current Standards vs. Proposed Standards
The USDA, child nutrition (CN) labeling program provides food manufacturers the option to include a standardized food crediting statement on their product label.
School meals are required to meet specific nutrition standards to operate the school meals programs. The standards align school meals with the latest nutrition science and the real world circumstances of America’s schools.
FD-060, Use of Donated Foods in the NSLP and Other Child Nutrition Programs (dated June 21, 2006) is cancelled.