Parents strongly support school food standards, poll says | Food and Environment Reporting Network

Parents supported strong school nutrition standards by a 3-to-1 margin in a nationwide poll conducted this summer, said a trio of groups active in public nutrition issues. The poll was conducted as school districts implement new “smart snacks” rules and as a House Republicans advocated a one-year waiver for some schools from compliance with requirements to serve healthy food. According to the results, most parents support nutrition standards for all food served in schools, from meals to snacks. Some 91 percent said schools should be required to provide a serving of fruits or vegetables with every meal.

The new standards say snacks must be a fruit, a vegetable, protein, dairy or whole grain; must have less than 200 calories; and be low in sugar, salt and fat. They are similar to school lunch rules that took effect during the 2012-13 school year. “The poll revealed that support for stricter school nutrition standards cut across racial and political lines,” said the American Heart Association, which sponsored the poll with Pew Charitable Trusts and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. To read a three-page summary of the poll results, click here.

The School Nutrition Association says its “State of School Nutrition 2014” report found schools are using creative menu options and other initiatives to promote healthy school meals “yet many districts still struggle with decreased student lunch participation at all grade levels and other challenges related to new nutrition standards for school meals.”