FNS Documents & Resources

The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 directed the Department of Agriculture to establish nutrition standards for all foods and beverages sold to students on the school campus during the school day, including foods sold through school fundraisers.

This memorandum is to inform you that all foods of minimal nutritional value exemptions will end on June 30, 2014. Therefore, the attached list, Exemptions Under the Competitive Foods Regulation will become obsolete on July 1, 2014. Beginning July, 1, 2014, the interim final rule for Smart Snacks in School will go into effect for school year 2014-15. Therefore, any competitive foods and beverages must meet the nutrition standards specified in the interim final rule.

This memorandum addresses inquiries regarding flexibility in determining the effective date of eligibility for students who are directly certified to receive free meals or free milk in the National School Lunch Program, the School Breakfast Program, and the Special Milk Program.

This memorandum supersedes SP 25-2012, CACFP 12-2012, SFSP 10-2012, Disaster Response and provides an overview of ways state agencies, school food authorities participating can respond to situations resulting from damage or disruptions due to natural disasters such as hurricanes, tornadoes, and flood as well as other exceptional emergency situations or man-made disasters. Allows state agencies to designate any appropriate facility, which is providing meals to displaced families who are being temporarily housed elsewhere, as a CACFP emergency shelter during a natural disaster or other emergency situation.

Attached are Questions and Answers related to the final rule published in the Federal Register on February 6, 2014 titled, Independent Review of Applications Required by the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010.

The purpose of this memorandum is to remind state agencies, school food authorities, schools, and sponsoring organizations operating in the National School Lunch Program, the School Breakfast Program, the Child and Adult Care Food Program, and the Summer Food Service Program about data sharing requirements and opportunities.

This memorandum is intended to clarify two issues regarding meals offered under National School Lunch Program  and School Breakfast Program. First, the memorandum clarifies the policy regarding student consumption of certain lunch or breakfast items outside of the foodservice area and meal period. Second, it clarifies the requirement to offer whole grain-rich products in the NSLP and SBP.

The purpose of this memorandum is to provide guidance regarding the treatment of culinary education programs that operate in schools participating in the federal school meal programs.

The purpose of this memorandum is to provide guidance regarding state agency responsibilities to establish limitations on the frequency of specially exempted fundraisers in schools.

The purpose of this memorandum is to clarify the status of grain-only items as entrées under the Interim Final Rule titled “National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program: Nutrition Standards for All Foods Sold in School as Required by the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010,” also known as the Smart Snacks in School rule.