TOPEKA - Kansas
schools are off to a healthy start thanks to changes made to school meals as
part of the federal Healthy Hunger-free Kids Act. Signed into law in 2011, the legislation
contains provisions to make meals more nutritious.
The new
school meals focus on more whole grains, fruits and vegetables, as well as
providing low-fat or non-fat milk and less sodium and fat. The purpose of the legislation was to promote
better nutrition and help students avoid risks for health problems such as
obesity, diabetes and high blood pressure.
“We know
that well-nourished children are ready to learn and will do better in class, so
we’re very pleased to see this added emphasis on healthy foods for students,“
said Cheryl Johnson, director of Child Nutrition and Wellness at the Kansas
State Department of Education. “I’m
proud of the way Kansas schools have embraced these changes and have been
working to gradually implement the changes in the Healthy Hunger-Free Kids
Act. School meals for Kansas students
are now even healthier than they were before.”
The changes
in the meal standards are in line with the latest nutritional science and the
Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Built
upon recommendations from the Institute of Medicine, the new standards do the
following:
Ensure students are offered both fruits and vegetables
every day of the week;
Increase offerings of whole grain-rich foods;
Offer only fat-free or low-fat milk;
Limit calories based on the age of children being served
to ensure proper portion size;
Increase
the focus on reducing the amounts of saturated fat, trans fat, added sugars and
sodium.
The first
change is that we are required to offer
2 oz. of meat/meat alternate. Last year on homemade items we were able to
give them a little more than that. This
year we cannot give them less than 2 oz. and we cannot give them more than 2
oz.
Last year we were able to give them
as much bread as they would eat. This
year we can only give them a minimum of 1 oz. of grain bread a day for all
grade groups; for K-5 a maximum of 9 oz. a week, 6-8 a maximum of 10 oz. a
week, and 9-12 a maximum of 12 oz. a week. They can buy extra bread or an extra entrée,
but we cannot give it to them. It is
also required that all bread items must be whole grain by July 1, 2014.
We are also limited to less than or
equal to 1230 mg of sodium for Grades K-5, 1360 mg for 6-8 and 1420 mg a day
for Grades 9-12. It will be even less in
the next few years.
Calorie levels daily are K-5: less
than or equal to 550-650, 6-8: less than or equal to 600-700, 9-12: less than or equal to 750-850.
Saturated
fat must be less than 10% of the total calories for the week.
The children are now required to take ½ cup
fruit and ½ cup vegetable or 1 cup of fruit or vegetable.
Please
encourage your children to eat all of the items that are offered. We do have the menus posted on each school’s
website. We encourage you to look at
them.
Thank you for your patience and understanding as we try to
implement all of the Federal Guidelines.
