''New regulations promote healthier snack foods in schools''
Jessica Donze Black speaks with Online Athens about the USDA's decision to set nutrition standards on school snack foods and beverages.
More info"After more than a year's delay, American schools will soon see new U.S. government rules targeting the kinds of snacks sold to students, a move nutritionists say could play an important role in fighting childhood obesity.
Anxious schools have waited more than a year to find out how sales of potato chips, candy bars, sodas and similar treats to students will be restricted. These rules on food sold outside traditional cafeteria meals are a key part of the first major overhaul on school food in more than three decades.
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack recently told Reuters that the rules on what snacks may be offered in vending machines, school stores and the like, originally due in late 2011, are expected to be finished in the early part of this year.
Officially, USDA said it expects the proposal by April, at which point a 60-day public comment period would kick in before final rules are issued - potentially for the next school year."
- Date added:
- Jan 31, 2013
- Project:
- Kids' Safe and Healthful Foods Project
- Topic:
- Food Safety
Related Resources
New Standards for School Vending Machines Provide More Than Just Healthy Snacks
While it might take time before we can evaluate the impact of the new standards, which won’t take effect until September 2014, we can look at what we already know to assess them in comparison to the current status quo. The first hint of the new regulation’s potential comes from the Pew Charitable Trusts Kids’ Safe and Healthful Foods Project, showing that children and teens gained less weight over three years if they lived in a state with strong policies on school snacks than if they lived in a state without such standards.
More infoMultistate Foodborne Illness Outbreaks
In January 2011, President Barack Obama signed the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) into law, signaling the first major update to our nation’s food safety oversight framework since the Great Depression. Despite widespread support for the legislation and its implementation, the Obama administration still has not issued all of the proposed rules under FSMA.
More infoPew Commends Sen. Mikulski on Food Safety Funding, Grants for School Kitchen Improvements
The Pew Charitable Trusts applauds Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) for her efforts to strengthen food safety protections under the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act, and provide grant funding to help school cafeterias across the nation upgrade their equipment to serve healthy, appealing meals to millions of school children. Funding for both programs was included in a larger bill approved by the Senate Appropriations Committee on Thursday.
More info''Congress Shouldn't Weaken Food Safety Laws''
"Being a Minnesotan, Jeff Almer searched for a polite term to describe how he feels about a congressional push to roll back the new food safety laws his family fought for when his elderly mother died after eating salmonella-laced peanut butter in late 2008."
More info''What the New USDA Rules for Healthier School Snacks Mean for Schools''
Jessica Donze Black, director of the Kids' Safe and Healthful Foods project, discusses the USDA's decision to finalize interim rules for snack foods and beverages sold in schools.
More infoMore Standards Released for School Nutrition
The Obama administration on Thursday released long-awaited nutrition standards for foods that schoolchildren can buy outside the cafeteria, changes that are intended to combat climbing childhood obesity rates.
More info“USDA touts 'Smart snacks' standards”
The U.S. Department of Agriculture has set new nutrition standards for food sold as snacks in schools, giving fruit and vegetable shippers opportunities for vending machines and snack bars. After considering nearly 250,000 comments, the agency on June 27 published the regulation, called “Smart Snacks in Schools,” also known as the “competitive snacks” rule, for junk food that competes with healthier lunch menus.
More info''Minn. School’s Adjust To USDA Lunch Guidelines''
"Minnesota schools are adjusting after the USDA issued new guidelines on the amount of fat and calories contained in snacks made available in lunchrooms. The guidelines are related to the school lunch changes that went into effect last year that cut calories, fat and sodium on kids’ plates. They’ll now include snacks, sides, and everything else in school."
More info“Brownies Bounced From Cafeterias in Healthier Eating Push”
"Children consume as many as half their daily calories in school, where they spend more time than any location except their homes, according to the Pew Charitable Trusts, which underwrites food safety programs. Studies show snacks add 112 calories to the average elementary-school student’s daily diet, and those who live in states with strong snack policies gain less weight over three years than those without regulations."
More info“New USDA snack standards still not strict enough for some Montgomery parents”
Jessica Donze Black, director of the Kids’ Safe and Healthful Foods Project, speaks to the Washington Post about the USDA's decision to finalize interim rules for snack foods and beverages sold in schools.
More info''Rules for School Vending Machines, Snacks Unveiled''
Education Week interviews Jessica Donze Black, director of the Kids' Safe and Healthful Foods Project about the USDA's decision to finalize interim rules on snack foods and beverages sold in schools.
More infoKids’ Safe and Healthful Foods Project Applauds USDA for Finalizing Snack Standards for Schools
Jessica Donze Black, director of the Kids’ Safe and Healthful Foods Project, issued the following statement regarding the interim final rule by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, or USDA, setting nutrition standards for snack foods and beverages sold in U.S. schools.More info
Infographic Urges USDA to Set National Standards for School Snacks
Although some states and districts have created standards for what can be sold as snacks and beverages in schools, the USDA hasn’t updated national guidelines in over 30 years. An infographic recently released by the Kids’ Safe and Healthful Foods Project summarizes research that supports the need for national nutrition standards for snack foods and beverages sold in schools.
More info
