Report Outlines the Effects of Non-USDA Foods Sold in Schools

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"Competitive foods" (i.e., foods offered at schools that are not meals served through the United States Department of Agriculture's [USDA's] school meal programs) affect the daily dietary intakes of school-age children, indicates a recent report presented to Congress by the USDA. Based on the report, very few school-age children meet the USDA's dietary guidelines, and therefore their intakes of nutrients such as calcium, phosphorous, and vitamin A are lower than they should be. According to the report, previous studies have shown that participation in the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) and the School Breakfast Program (SBP) is associated with higher intakes of some of these nutrients.

The report addresses children's dietary intake and the impact of competitive foods on the NSLP and the SBP. The report also discusses factors that influence the availability of competitive foods, including student preferences, schools' increased financial demands and limited resources (which frequently require school meal programs--once part of school budgets--to be self-supporting), and inadequate meal periods.

The authors maintain that competitive foods

1. have diet-related health risks because they lack the nutrients necessary for growth and learning;



2. may stigmatize school meal programs as being only for children with low incomes;



3. may affect the viability of school meal programs because of declining participation; and



4. result in children receiving a mixed message, because while they are learning about good nutrition in the classroom they are presented with low-nutrient-density food options outside the classroom.

According to the report, "the SMI [School Meals Initiative for Healthy Children] First Year Report indicates that the number of snack offerings is growing in an increasing number of schools. The unrestricted availability of competitive foods jeopardizes both the effectiveness of the [school meal] programs and children's motivation to participate." The authors recommend that the USDA and Congress work together to establish a national nutrition policy "to foster a healthier school nutrition environment in communities across America."

United States Department of Agriculture. 2001. Foods Sold in Competition with USDA School Meal Programs: A Report to Congress. Washington, DC: United States Department of Agriculture. Report available at http://www.fns.usda.gov/cnd/Lunch/CompetitveFoods/competitive.foods.report.to.congress.htm

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MCH Alert. 2001. Arlington, VA: National Center for Education in Maternal and Child Health. http://www.ncemch.org/alert.