Snack items and side dishes: 200 mg sodium per item as served, including any added accompaniments, Entre items: 480 mg sodium per item as served, including any added accompaniments, Snack items and side dishes: 200 calories per item as served, including any added accompaniments, Entre items: 350 calories per item as served including any added accompaniments, Use of accompaniments is limited when competitive food is sold to students in school.
While there have been numerous success stories, best practices, and innovative practices, it is too early to definitively ascertain the overall impact to school revenue. Archives of Pediatric & Adolescent Medicine, 166:452-458. This commenter asserted that although the exemption for a la carte NLSP/SBP entre items only exists on the day and day after it is served as part of a reimbursable meal, many schoolsparticularly high schools that offer multiple meals each daymay offer popular items like pizza, breaded chicken nuggets, and burgers every day or nearly every day. Thirty comments suggested that all food fundraisers taking place in schools be required to adhere to the competitive food standards at all times. HHFKA Webinar & Conference CallJune, 22, 2011, 4. To help us improve GOV.UK, wed like to know more about your visit today. The Food and Nutrition Service is committed to complying with the E-Government Act of 2002, to promote the use of the Internet and other information technologies to provide increased opportunities for citizen access to Government information and services and for other purposes. Socio-demographic disparities in distribution shifts over time in various adiposity measures among American children and adolescents: What changes in prevalence rates could not reveal. Some commenters supported the IFR competitive food calorie limits. These groupings reflect the IOM recommendations and appropriately provide additional choices to high school students, based on their increased level of independence. In addition, as a reminder, these standards are minimum standards. In recognition of the marketplace and implementation limitations, but also mindful of important national nutrition goals, the IFR implemented a phased-in approach to identifying allowable competitive foods under the general standard. A trade association commended USDA for agreeing to issue future guidance on determining which dried fruits with added nutritive sweeteners qualify for the exemption. The IFR exempts NSLP/SBP entre items from the competitive food standards when served as a competitive food on the day of service or the day after service in the reimbursable lunch or breakfast program. However, there is a distinction to be made between the meal patterns for reimbursable meals and the competitive food standards. Policy Brief prepared by Samuels & Associates for The California Endowment and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Many of those commenters argued that once an item is served that meets reimbursable meal pattern guidelines, it should be allowed to be sold as a competitive food without frequency restrictions. The revisions and additions read as follows: (3) Entre item means an item that is intended as the main dish and is either: (i) A combination food of meat or meat alternate and whole grain rich food; or, (ii) A combination food of vegetable or fruit and meat or meat alternate; or, (iii) A meat or meat alternate alone with the exception of yogurt, low-fat or reduced fat cheese, nuts, seeds and nut or seed butters, and meat snacks (such as dried beef jerky); or. Similarly, a school district also recommended removing the total fat limit, asserting that such a limit is inconsistent with the NSLP/SBP requirements and will place an undue burden on menu planners. 42 U.S.C. Health Affairs, 28:w751-w760. documents in the last year, 1041 In addition, some previous State agency standards as well as the previous standards implemented by the Alliance for a Healthier Generation did allow eggs for the reasons cited above. The documents posted on this site are XML renditions of published Federal Such challenges may be ongoing for some schools. Absent an evaluation of the nutritional profile of the competitive foods available for sale at the schools, the local educational agency has no way of knowing whether a food item meets the nutrition standards set forth in this rule. Twenty comments addressed the IFR trans fat restriction. Such exempt products are still subject to other competitive food nutrient standards such as the trans fat, sugar, calorie and sodium standards. In response to concerns raised by operators in the first year of implementation, FNS issued policy guidance clarifying that paired exempt foods retain their individually designated exemption for total fat, saturated fat, and/or sugar when packaged together and sold. However, information available to the Department indicates that industry has made major strides over the past three years and many manufacturers have come into compliance with the competitive food standards by reformulating their products in recognition of the fact that the 10-percent DV General Standard would become obsolete as of July 1, 2016. The Department believes, and the experience of many operators confirms, that if the LEA local school wellness designee(s), school food service, and other entities and groups involved with the sale of food on the school campus during the school day work together to share information on allowable foods and coordinate recordkeeping responsibilities, the result is the successful implementation and maintenance of a healthy school environment. Therefore, this final rule makes no changes to the General Standards for competitive foods established by the IFR and the 10-percent DV standard has expired as scheduled. Sixty-five commenters generally opposed the ICR beverage standards and cited a variety of reasons, from wanting to allow all grade levels to have no-calorie/low calorie beverages to opposing allowing high school students to have no-calorie/low calorie beverages available to them in school. This rule proposed nutrition standards for foods offered for sale to students outside of the NSLP and SBP, including foods sold la carte and in school stores and vending machines. A food manufacturer urged USDA to simplify the criteria for competitive foods by using only the calorie limit and eliminating the total fat, saturated fat, and sugar limits, arguing that the combined calorie limit and food group standards would be less burdensome to implement and would inherently limit fats and sugars. The 2015-2020 DGA contain specific recommendations on limiting added sugar. 2011. Such entre items also may be served at lunch in the NSLP on the day of or the day after service in the SBP. [4] The food industry has made a significant effort to reformulate products to meet this standard and to reinforce the importance of whole grains to the general public as well. on FNS has reviewed this rule in accordance with Departmental Regulations 4300-4, Civil Rights Impact Analysis, and 1512-1, Regulatory Decision Making Requirements. After a careful review of the rule's intent and provisions, FNS has determined that this rule is not intended to limit or reduce in any way the ability of protected classes of individuals to receive benefits on the basis of their race, color, national origin, sex, age or disability nor is it intended to have a differential impact on minority owned or operated business establishments and woman-owned or operated business establishments that participate in the Child Nutrition Programs. documents in the last year, 53 The community organization argued that these items are of minimal nutritional value and typically involve the addition of high-sugar syrups. These commenters stated that the Summary of Major Provisions in the preamble states that competitive foods must contain no more than 10 percent of total calories from saturated fat, but 210.11(f)(1)(ii) states that the saturated fat content of a competitive food must be less than 10 percent of total calories. (At this time, this applies to dried cranberries, tart cherries and blueberries only.) This rule continues to require that all local educational agencies and schools participating in the NSLP and SBP meet the nutrition standards for competitive foods sold to students on the school campus during the school day. The Department maintains that it is important to account for the dietary contribution of accompaniments in determining whether a food item may be served as a competitive food. Comments represented a diversity of interests, including advocacy organizations, industry and trade associations, farm and other industry groups, schools, school boards and school nutrition and education associations, State departments of education, consumer groups and others. Another advocacy organization stated that the approach taken in the IFR will allow for reasonable flexibility for the school food service while also addressing concerns regarding the frequency with which particular food items are available. The standards were designed to complement recent improvements in school meals, and to help promote diets that contribute to students' long term health and well-being. A professional association and a food manufacturer requested that typical breakfast foods, such as a bagel and its accompaniments be considered an entre rather than a snack/side item at breakfast time or at lunch time. The SBP is listed in the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance under No. This document has been published in the Federal Register. The Department wishes to reiterate that section 208 of the HHFKA amended the CNA to require that the competitive food standards apply to foods sold at any time during the school day, which does not include afterschool programs, events and activities. Another common and generally healthy snack food is guacamole. Comments are also sought on whether the total fat standard should be maintained but should exempt certain food items. Plain water or plain carbonated water (no size limit); Non-fat milk, flavored or unflavored (8 fl oz), including nutritionally equivalent milk alternatives as permitted by the school meal requirements; 100% fruit/vegetable juice (8 fl oz); and, 100% fruit/vegetable juice diluted with water (with or without carbonation), and no added sweeteners (8 fl oz). Most commenters supported the exemptions to the total sugar requirement as well as the provision allowing an exemption for dried fruit with nutritive sweeteners required for processing and/or palatability purposes. Preliminary Regulatory Impact Analysis, Docket No. Documents converted to accessible formats to meet accessibility requirements. Twenty-five comments expressed general support for the IFR, many citing concerns for childhood obesity and stating that competitive food standards will reinforce healthy eating habits in school and outside of school. The consultation sessions were coordinated by FNS and held on the following dates and locations: 1. This exemption appears in 210.11(f)(iv). An individual commenter acknowledged that sodium limits will alter the tastes of many foods, but suggested that there are many other spices, herbs, and other ways to enhance the flavors of foods without increasing the risk of hypertension. Two commenters supported requiring accompaniments to be included in the nutrient profile as part of the food item served. (At this time, this applies to dried cranberries, tart cherries and dried blueberries only.). FNS also will make the comments publicly available by posting a copy of all comments on http://regulations.gov. The recordkeeping requirement simply requires the local educational agency to retain the reviewed documentation (e.g., the nutrition labels, receipts, and/or product specifications) in their files. Fifty-three of these comments were copies of form letters related to nine different mass mail campaigns. One of the general standards for competitive foods included in 210.11(c)(2)(ii) and (e) requires that grain products be whole-grain rich, meaning that they must contain 50 percent or more whole grains by weight or have whole grains as the first ingredient. Section 210.10(a)(1) of the final rule continues to require that schools make potable water available and accessible without restriction to children at no charge in the place where lunches are served during the meal service. The analysis uses available data to construct model-based scenarios that different schools may experience in implementing the rule. The memo also clarified that the competitive foods nutrition standards have no impact on the culinary education programs' curriculum in schools, nor do they have any impact on foods sold to adults at any time or to students outside of the school day. For example, these commenters suggested that reducing physical education class in school has led to increased sedentary lifestyles of children. Therefore, FNS is formalizing this policy clarification through this final rule by adding a definition of Paired exempt foods at 210.11(a)(6). Well send you a link to a feedback form. These markup elements allow the user to see how the document follows the General Summary of Comments Received on the Interim Rule, IV. Therefore, the whole grain-rich standard established in the interim final rule is affirmed in this final rule. include documents scheduled for later issues, at the request A trade association and a food manufacturer stated that they were not aware of any canned vegetables that contain only water and sugar for processing purposes. State agencies were advised of the section 204 requirements in FNS Memorandum, Child Nutrition Reauthorization 2010: Local School Wellness Policies, issued July 8, 2011 (SP 42-2011). School day, and School campus at 210.11(a). Effective date: This final rule is effective September 27, 2016. Another food manufacturer expressed support for a sugar restriction based on percent calories by weight, although stating that it did not believe a total sugar limit is warranted. Preliminary Regulatory Impact Analysis, Docket No. It will take only 2 minutes to fill in. Federal Register provide legal notice to the public and judicial notice You can change your cookie settings at any time. Side dishes sold la carte would be required to meet all applicable competitive food standards. The IFR stipulated that as of July 1, 2016, snack items and side dishes must have not more than 200 calories and 200 mg of sodium per item as packaged or served. corresponding official PDF file on govinfo.gov. An individual commenter recommended creating a separate definition of breakfast entre to allow grain/bread items as an option.
Prevalence of Obesity Among Children and Adolescents: United States, Trends 1963-1965 Through 2007-2008. Stakeholders were very supportive of the IFR, and some had specific comments and suggestions on several provisions included in the rule. Summary of Public Comments for Proposed Rule on Nutrition Impact of the 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, III. The full Regulatory Impact Analysis includes a brief discussion of comments submitted by school officials, public health organizations, industry representatives, parents, students, and other interested parties on the costs and benefits of the final rule submitted. Some stated that such an exemption would ease menu planning and operational issues as well as reduce confusion. documents in the last year, 80 Other commenters indicated that if schools are not allowed to sell no-calorie/low calorie beverages in high school students will purchase them elsewhere and bring them to school. Each document posted on the site includes a link to the Approximately 245,665 of these were form letters, nearly all of which were related to 104 different mass mail campaigns. In addition, 210.11(h)(2) provided the following exemptions to the total sugar standard: Most commenters generally supported the application of the total sugars by weight standard. documents in the last year, 891 'Portion sizes and food groups' updated: corrected dairy portions for secondary pupils. Register (ACFR) issues a regulation granting it official legal status. documents in the last year, by the Fish and Wildlife Service In response, USDA appreciates that implementation could be more difficult in schools with overlapping grade groups, but considers it important to maintain in the final rule the three grade groupings included in the IFR. No policy changes have been made. The limited information available indicates that many schools have successfully introduced competitive food reforms with little or no loss of revenue and in a few cases, revenues from competitive foods increased after introducing healthier foods. Twenty commenters specifically addressed recordkeeping. A school district expressed support for the IFR requirements relating to accompaniments not requiring pre-portioning, but requiring that they be included in the nutrient profile of competitive foods. No questions or comments were raised specific to this rulemaking at that time. 1503 & 1507. In addition to public comments submitted during the formal comment period, USDA continued to respond to feedback and questions from program operators and other impacted parties throughout the implementation year in order to provide clarification, develop policy guidance, and inform us as the final rule was being developed. CDC-NHCS, NCHS Health E-Stat, June 2010. legal research should verify their results against an official edition of
In the spring of 2011, FNS offered opportunities for consultation with Tribal officials or their designees to discuss the impact of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 on tribes or Indian Tribal governments. documents in the last year, by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services the Federal Register. When such a statement is needed for a rule, section 205 of the UMRA generally requires the Department to identify and consider a reasonable number of regulatory alternatives and adopt the least costly, more cost-effective or least burdensome alternative that achieves the objectives of the rule. One trade association applauded the Department's encouragement of dairy foods consumption throughout the rule and urged that these changes be retained.
Research focused specifically on the effects of obesity in children indicates that obese children feel they are less capable, both socially and athletically, less attractive, and less worthwhile than their non-obese counterparts. Specifically, a health care association commented that because schools are allowed to balance the nutrition components of reimbursable meals over a week, foods that may exceed the limits for fat, sodium, and calories can be included in a reimbursable meal when balanced over the week with healthier sides. Executive Orders 12866 and 13563 direct agencies to assess all costs and benefits of available regulatory alternatives and, if regulation is necessary, to select regulatory approaches that maximize net benefits (including potential economic, environmental, public health and safety effects, distributive impacts, and equity). Seven commenters expressed general opposition to the IFR nutrient standards for competitive foods without discussing a specific element of the nutrient standards. In addition, USDA has provided guidance on fundraisers in response to a variety of specific questions received during implementation and this guidance may be found in Policy Memo SP 23-2014(V.3) available on our Web site at http://www.fns.usda.gov/nslp/policy. These commenters asserted that this rule will introduce these students to healthier foods and possibly influence home food consumption patterns and protect the nutritional needs of children. In addition, the Department wishes to remind the public that the fundraiser standards do not apply to food sold during non-school hours, weekends and off-campus fundraising events such as concessions during after-school sporting events. As indicated in the preamble to the proposed rule, this standard is consistent with the DGA recommendations, the whole grain-rich requirements for school meals and the prior HUSSC whole grain-rich requirement (HUSSC has subsequently updated the standards to conform to these competitive food standards). Canned fruits with no added ingredients except water, which are packed in 100% juice, extra light syrup, or light syrup are exempt from all nutrient standards. In other schools, students responded favorably to the healthier options and competitive food revenue declined little or not at all. A couple of comments dealt with various combinations of food items that are effectively dealt with in this final rule with the addition of a definition of Paired exempt foods discussed previously in this preamble. The Department appreciates that this regulation may have created some new challenges initially, as schools implemented the IFR and took steps to improve the school nutrition environment. This final rule, therefore, incorporates relatively minor modifications to the provisions of the IFR. On the web at http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hestat/obesity_child_07_08/obesity_child_07_08.htm. A professional association and several individual commenters suggested that the saturated fat standard should exclude eggs or cheese packaged for individual sale and for non-fried vegetables and legumes.
