More than six months after the federal government imposed tougher food service regulations for school districts across the county, the Department of Agriculture has proposed additional guidelines to make snacks sold in schools healthier.
In February, the USDA proposed new standards to reduce the amount of fat, salt and sugar in high-calorie a la carte items that are often sold in school cafeterias. And while many district officials agree with a push for healthier foods in school, some are afraid any new regulations could hurt sales in self-sustaining programs still adjusting to new regulations.
“The actual guidelines haven’t started for a la carte yet and I’m hoping they aren’t going to,” said Paul Franchini, the food service coordinator for Bethlehem Central School District. “It all depends since they haven’t made it clear how they want us to set it up.”
In 2010, President Barack Obama signed the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act. While the new law increased the number of children eligible to participate in free school lunch programs, it also set new nutritional standards for all lunches sold in school. Those regulations were based on recommendations from the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies and required schools to increase the servings of fruits, vegetables, whole grains and fat-free milks, while the amounts of sodium, trans fat and saturated fat allowed in foods were reduced.
Franchini said the district has made the required changes and received a perfect score form the government. He said with the help of forward-thinking food service vendors, the change wasn’t as hard as he had feared, and BCSD ended up already being in compliance with many of their food options.
There was an impact, though. The number of lunches sold decreased over the first three months of the new regulations. Franchini said the average number of lunches sold per day went from 1,350 across the district to less than 1,000 (there are about 5,000 students in BC schools). The numbers are now leveling off as students get use to the new menus.
“We got a lot of complaints from parents the past few months about kids coming home hungry,” he said. “Now parents are understanding what we are doing and kids getting used to it. The meals are healthy and the items better for them.”
Those fluctuations have fiscal implications, though. School lunch programs must be self-supporting, and with the number of lunches sold dropping many districts are making up for the loss through the sale of a la carte items. Those items range from an apple or salad, a carton of milk, ice cream or slice of pizza.
Franchini said a la carte choices at BC’s elementary schools are limited and there are a few more options at the middle school. At the high school, a la carte items make up 25 to 30 percent of all sales. He said because those choices are limited at the lower school levels, the methodology behind the new lunch regulations should work to help future generations make healthier eating habits, but those in high school already have found the menu change hard and sometimes opt to skip traditional lunch and buy a la carte.
The federal government actually relaxed some their guidelines after older students across the country complained of still being hungry after lunch because portions were smaller. In December, an increase to protein and bread portions was announced.
In a statement, the USDA said the intent of the proposed regulations is “not to limit popular snack items, but instead to provide snack foods that are healthier” and added “many schools have implemented voluntary standards with little to no loss of revenue.”
The proposed USDA regulations would impact vending machines, a la carte lines and snack bars. The caloric count of snacks could be limited to 200 calories and a limit would be placed on the types of drinks sold in schools depending on the grade level. The federal government cannot place regulations on any food brought into the school by students and staff for lunch, snacks or as part of a celebration.
Franchini said he is unsure of how the proposed regulation could affect the high school’s cafe, or new pizza and sub shop.
“They always leave a little more room for the high school and that’s what I’m betting on,” he said.
According to BC Chief Business and Financial Officer Judith Kehoe, the district’s $1 million food service program is on target to break even this school year.
BCSD receives 27 cents for every meal served per student from the federal government and 0.0023 cents from the state for every non-reduced meal sold. Breakfast costs $2 for all students and lunch costs $3 for elementary students and $3.25 for those in the middle and high schools. District officials said 3 to 4 percent of BC students qualify for free or reduced-price lunches.
The district ended its breakfast program at the elementary school levels at the beginning of the school year because of a lack of interest and to save money.
Franchini said the goal now is to get the word out to parents that school lunches are healthier than ever and to increase lunch participation so the district won’t have to rely as much on a la carte sales, partially because lunches are partially reimbursed by the government and snack sales are not.
The food service department has also increased its efforts to inform students about the food served through posters and informational material, and employees are encouraging students to try new foods.
“You can’t be self-sustaining if you can’t attract the kids,” Franchini said.