New Federal Rules Require Changes in School Lunches

This fall, STMA school cafeterias are meeting challenging new federal nutrition standards for school meals, ensuring that meals are healthy and well-balanced and provide students all the nutrition they need to succeed at school. Now is a great time to encourage your kids to choose school lunch!

School meals offer students milk, fruits and vegetables, proteins and grains, and they must meet strict limits on saturated fats, trans fat and portion size.

Starting in School Year 2012-2013, school lunches will meet additional standards requiring:

• Age-appropriate calorie limits
• Larger servings of vegetables and fruits, with students being required to take a least one half-cup serving of fruit or vegetables
• A wider variety of vegetables, including dark green and red/orange vegetables and legumes
• Fat-free or 1% milk (flavored milk must be fat-free)
• More whole grains
• Less Sodium

The calorie minimum and maximum for students will be as follows (previously there were only minimums):

• Grades K-5: 550-650 calories
• Grades 6-8: 600-700 calorie
• Grades 9-12: 750-850 calories

The bread/grain minimum and maximum for students will be as follows (previously there were only minimums):

• Grades K-5: 1 serving per day; 8-9 per week
• Grades 6-8: 1 serving per day, 8-10 per week
• Grades 9-12: 2 servings per day, 10-12 per week

The meat/meat alternate minimum and maximum for students will be as follows (previously there were only minimums):

• Grades K-5: 1 oz equiv per day, 8-10 oz per week
• Grades 6-8: 1 oz per day, 9-10 per week
• Grades 9-12: 2 oz equiv per day, 10-12 oz per week

We know that at times change can be hard. Some of the more apparent changes that students will see include a limit on the bread/grain items now served, stricter control on meat/meat alternate (protein) serving sizes, and increased serving portions of fruit and vegetables. But with parent support, we can be sure that children adopt the kind of healthful eating habits and lifestyles that will enable them to live longer, more productive lives.

The school board was required to increase lunches over the last two years as a result of the new federal regulations. The district operates an efficient food service program but in order to qualify for the federal reimbursement the district was required to increase lunch prices regulated by State and Federal guidelines.

For more information on the Healthy Hunger Free Kids Act and new meal patterns go to: www.fns.usda.gov/cnd/Governance/Legislation/CNR_2010.htm.