‘Offering our children healthier choices’: The growing push for school lunch reform

In 2022, The Lancet, a British peer-reviewed journal focused on global public health, published a short article titled: “Unhealthy school meals: a solution to hunger or a health problem?” As the report suggested, providing school meals is an important measure to prevent food insecurity there that nearly 30 million children receive free or reduced-price breakfast and lunch during the average American school day, and many of these students rely on school meals. main source of nutrition.

Yet while these meals meet the federal government’s nutritional requirements, they often simply consist of a myriad of processed foods — cereal, fruit juice, chicken nuggets, corn dogs, frozen pizzas — served with a fruit or vegetable and a carton of dairy milk. “Actually, the official Dietary Guidelines for Meals do not serve pizza or corn dogs, as long as the nutritional specifications (total calories, sugar, fat and salt content) are met,” the report states.

While the often dismal quality of school meals has been both pop culture and a long-standing public health concern for decades, processed foods have become a hot topic in recent years as a number of new reports have emerged linking the consumption of the super. factors to a myriad of health problems, from certain types of cancer to heart disease.

While there is no current data on what percentage of American school lunches are processed, a 2022 UK study found that about 75% of calories consumed from lunches served in their primary and secondary schools came from ultra-processed foods , but another recent report from Northwestern University indicates that 73% of the US food supply is over-processed, meaning the statistics for US lunches are likely similar. The reasons for this are varied and complex, including cost concerns, logistical challenges and severe kitchen staff shortages.

However, the concerns remain and this has led to child nutrition experts and consumer groups raising flags about how safe it really is for school lunches to rely on processed foods as much as they do.

Some target specific foods.

For example, earlier this year, Consumer Reports called on the federal government to remove Lunchables from the national free and reduced-price school lunch program after analysis found high levels of sodium and elevated levels of heavy metals. As Salon’s Joy Saha reported at the time, the USDA currently allows two lunch kits, Turkey & Cheddar Cracker Stackers and Extra Cheesy Pizza, to be served as part of the National School Lunch Program. Per Saha,

In line with the program’s requirements, Kraft Heinz – maker of Lunchables – improved the nutritional value of the school lunch kits, adding more whole grains to the crackers and total protein.

However, Consumer Reports claims that the lunchable packs served at school have even more sodium than the packs you can buy in stores across the country.

“Lunch is not a healthy option for children and should not be allowed on the menu as part of the National School Lunch Program,” Brian Ronholm, director of food policy at Consumer Reports, said at the time. “Lunchables and similar lunch kits we tested contain high levels of sodium and harmful chemicals that can lead to serious health problems over time.”

While Lunchables have not been recalled from the school lunch program since they published their analysis in April, Consumer Reports has released a petition urging the USDA to do so, and it has garnered 26,964 of the desired 30,000 signatures.

“We urge the USDA to take the necessary steps to ensure that processed lunch kits are not eligible for the school lunch program – and give our nation’s school children healthier food choices,” the petition reads. “New tests from Consumer Reports found that store-bought lunches had relatively high levels of lead, cadmium and sodium. And all but one set (Lunchables Extra Cheesy Pizza) contained the plastic phthalate, a known hormone disruptor that can contribute to an increased risk of reproductive problems, diabetes and certain cancers.”

It continued: “Even in small amounts, lead and cadmium can cause developmental problems in children, with the risk increasing with regular exposure over time.” And eating too much sodium can lead to high blood pressure: about 14% of children and adolescents have prehypertension or hypertension. Please take the necessary steps to ensure that these processed food kits are not eligible for lunch and offer our children a healthier choice.”

Some who are concerned about the quality of school lunches try to take a broader approach. In California, California Congressman Jesse Gabriel has introduced California Assembly Bill (AB) 2316, also called the California School Food Safety Act. The bill aims to ban public schools from serving foods containing six synthetic dyes – red dye no. 40, yellow dye no. 5, yellow dye no. 6, blue dye no. 1, blue dye no. 2 and green dye no. 3 – linked to behavioral problems such as hyperactivity and inattention in children, according to a 2021 California EPA report.

Although these dyes are common in products like Froot Loops and M&Ms, they are already subject to warning labels in the European Union. Gabriel, who wrote the bill, argues that outdated FDA research that allows these additives to be included in school meals does not protect children, especially those with ADHD, which both he and one of his children have.

“California has a duty to protect our students from substances that harm children and can interfere with their ability to learn,” Gabriel said in introducing the legislation. “As a legislator, a parent, and someone who struggles with ADHD, I find it unacceptable that we allow schools to serve foods with additives linked to cancer, hyperactivity, and neurobehavioral damage.” This bill will empower schools to better protect the health and well-being of our kids and encourage manufacturers to stop using these dangerous additives.

The bill is proposed to go to a decisive vote in the Senate Appropriations Committee next week. If it passes committee on Aug. 15, it will move on to the state Senate for a final vote before reaching Governor Gavin Newsom.