The School Nutrition Association has sent a letter to the USDA asking it to reinstate the current administration’s rollbacks to the National School Lunch Program that were blocked by a federal court earlier this week.
The court ruled that the 2018 rollbacks, which got rid of whole-grain requirements and loosened sodium requirements in school meals, violated the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), and said the USDA didn’t seek public feedback on the final three reductions of sodium-level standards.
In the letter submitted by the SNA, school officials said they are concerned that K-12 operators will face meal planning challenges when trying to find products that fit the more stringent meal requirements, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“COVID-19 shortages and supply chain disruptions will greatly magnify these challenges for meal programs next school year, making it even more difficult to secure foods that meet highly specialized school nutrition standards. Smaller school districts and those in rural areas with limited purchasing power or access to distribution channels already have few options when selecting menu items,” the letter said. “Meanwhile, school meal programs nationwide face crippling financial losses due to extended school closures—a further impediment to menu planning and purchases in the coming school year.”