The School Nutrition Association continues its push to increase the meal reimbursement schools receive and relax nutrition standards.
In a new position paper, released Jan. 29, the SNA calls on Congress to raise per-meal reimbursements by 35 cents. It also recommends that Congress relax some of the strict nutrition standards that went into effect as part of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act. Lawmakers are set to review the law later in 2015.
Among its demands, the SNA suggests that legislators ease the whole-grain requirement. Currently, all grains must be whole-grain rich—but this mandate increases waste and contributes to fewer students eating school lunches, the association says. Instead, the group is asking that the requirement be reduced back to the prior standard of 50 percent whole-grains.
Additionally, the SNA would like school food authorities have more autonomy over the requirement that students must take half a cup of fruits or vegetables per meal. While the association encourages schools to offer a variety of fruits and vegetables, it believes that requiring students to take a specified amount has led to food waste.