The federal government has prescribed nutritional requirements for school meals since the authorization of the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) in 1946. Such requirements have changed throughout the course of history. Current law requires the Secretary of Agriculture to prescribe "minimum nutritional requirements" based on…

This report starts with an overview of child nutrition programs' funding structure and then provides detail on each program, including a discussion of how they are administered, eligibility rules for institutions and participants, nutritional and other program requirements, and recent policy changes. Changes to child nutrition programs that have…

The federal government has a long history of investing in programs for feeding children, starting with federal aid for school lunch programs in the 1930s. Today, federal child nutrition programs support food served to children in schools and a variety of other institutional settings. The child nutrition programs support meals and snacks served to…

Through its commodity program, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) provides commodity foods at no cost to schools taking part in the national school meals programs. Commodities include raw ground beef, cheese, poultry, and fresh produce. Like federal food safety agencies, the commodity program has taken steps designed to reduce microbial…

Over the past few years, several food recalls, such as for beef and peanut products, have affected schools. It is especially important that recalls affecting schools be carried out efficiently and effectively because young children have a higher risk of complications from food-borne illnesses. GAO was asked to determine how federal agencies (1)…

The School Breakfast Program is a federally assisted meal program operating in public and nonprofit private schools and residential child care institutions. It began as a pilot project in 1966, and was made permanent in 1975. The School Breakfast Program is administered at the Federal level by the Food and Nutrition Service. At the State level,…

The number of overweight and obese children and adolescents has reached epidemic proportions, and recent federal surveys show that most school meals do not meet federal nutrition guidelines. Accordingly, there is growing interest in the nutritional quality of foods available in U.S. schools--and in the role of the government in helping to make…

This booklet presents the program transcripts of a weekly series "Options in Education", broadcast by National Public Radio. The topic under discussion in this program is food in the schools. The options of nutritionists, professionals, and administrators concerning food programs in schools in New York City are presented. Among the topics…

Guidelines for implementing and operating a school breakfast program in New York are provided in this document. Following an introduction that explains the need for school breakfast programs, sections describe program history, meal pattern requirements, eligible participants, and available state and local financial assistance. Program requirements…

This manual contains information on federal policy regarding meal-pattern requirements for school-nutrition programs. It also describes the Offer Versus Serve (OVS) provision, which allows students to decline either one or two food items they do not intend to eat in order to reduce food waste. The manual explains food components, gives examples of…

This manual contains information about the selection and implementation of a meal counting and claiming system for the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) and the School Breakfast Program (BSP). Federal reimbursement is provided for each meal that meets program requirements and is served to an eligible student. Part 1 explains the six elements of…

The two basic family feeding programs are food stamps and commodity distribution. The current food stamp program provides the poor with spending power enough to purchase at the level of the Department of Agriculture's Economy Food Plan. The dollar equivalent of this plan is 112 dollars a month for a family of four. This amounts to an average per…

The National School Lunch Program is designed to safeguard schoolchild health by improving and/or maintaining levels of nutrition, and strengthen the agricultural economy by stimulating food demand. The General Accounting Office (GAO) examined whether the program is meeting its legislative objectives and analyzed available information on what is…

This document identifies the federal nutrition standards required in order to claim cash reimbursement and donated United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) commodities for meals served through school lunch or school breakfast programs. Minimum serving requirements for school lunch and school breakfast patterns are detailed by age/grade…

This publication reports the considerations of a subcommittee to which was referred H.R. Bill 1139 to amend the National School Lunch Act and the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 in order to extend and revise the food service program. The bill would extend through 1982 three child nutrition programs whose authorizations are expiring at the end of…