The School Nutrition Association of Virginia would like to express our support for these proposed regulations and also address a few of our concerns.

The School Nutrition Association of Virginia represents over 1,700 members who provide high-quality, affordable, nutritious meals to students across the Commonwealth. We were one of the stakeholder groups who worked on the “Healthy Snacks” legislation in 2010 and served on the advisory group that helped craft these regulations. We appreciate being included in this process and strongly support the purpose of the proposed regulations.

The federal government has issued proposed regulations for competitive foods that are set to become effective July 1, 2014. Therefore, the School Nutrition Association of Virginia urges you to conform the Virginia proposed regulations to match the federal regulations. It would be burdensome and illogical for us to operate under two different sets of regulations- federal and state- for competitive foods. If implementation of the federal regulations is delayed, it would still be prudent for us to conform the Virginia regulations to the federal regulations so that we will be ready and prepared when the new federal rules are implemented. It would be extremely onerous to adjust our programs to meet one set of regulations, only to have to change once again when the federal regulations take effect.

As you review the regulations and consider making changes- we ask that you consider the following perspectives.

·       We would like to reiterate the need for flexible and simple regulations that are consistent with national meal pattern guidelines in order to limit any additional burden with regard to implementation and the purchasing of food.

·       The SNA believes school nutrition programs should be the primary food provider within the school buildings and throughout the campus.

·       We firmly believe that any product that can be used as part of the reimbursable lunch should also be able to be sold as a competitive food without any further restriction.

In addition, we do have concerns with a few components of the proposed federal regulations. Many groups, including the national School Nutrition Association, are working at the national level to address these concerns and we are hopeful that the final regulations will be revised to reflect such changes. We have included some of those concerns below.

In conclusion, we are working at the federal level to address these concerns and hope to fully support the final version of the federal regulations. We would then urge you to revise the Virginia regulations to be in line with the new federal rules.  Thank you for your time and consideration of our comments.

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The national School Nutrition Association has submitted comments in regards to the proposed federal regulations for competitive foods. We would like to reiterate the following:

1.The proposed federal regulations require that an allowable competitive food includes a “combination food that contains ¼ cup of fruit or vegetable.”

SNA Recommendation: The SNA would like to reiterate that the current meal requirements for lunches and requirements for afterschool snacks provide that a minimum creditable serving is a 1/8 cup. In order to maintain consistency with the existing rule, SNA recommends that the fruit or vegetable requirement for a competitive combination food be reduced to 1/8 cup.

2.     The federal regulations adopt an exemption for National School Lunch Program/School Breakfast Program (NSLP/SBP) entrée items only. Side dishes served à la carte would be required to meet all applicable competitive food standards. The exemption for the entrée items is available on the day the entrée item is served in the NSLP/SBP and the following school day.

SNA Recommendation: School Nutrition Professionals are charged by their local Boards of Education (BOE) or other governing bodies to operate the programs entrusted to them with nutritional, operational, and fiscal integrity and fidelity. Achieving these expectations requires School Nutrition Professionals to have the latitude to make menu decisions, many of which are precluded by the proposed regulations. The expectation of most local governing boards is for the school nutrition program to generate the revenues necessary to be financially self-supporting. As a result, school nutrition programs are expected to generate revenues beyond the Federal reimbursement in order to meet routine financial obligations such as salaries/benefits, food, equipment, and accountability-related technologies.

Extreme limitations on à la carte menu items, like entrées and side dishes that are consistent with the Dietary Guidelines, prevents school nutrition programs from making menu decisions that may impact student participation and subsequently, revenues. When our programs are unable to generate the revenues needed to support program operations, local governing boards are required to provide financial support by contributing funds that are typically earmarked for classroom or other academic purposes to the program’s non-profit school nutrition account. This situation often places our programs and the local governing board at cross purposes. While nutrition is the cornerstone of the school nutrition program, the elements of operating the “business” of school meals must be considered when making the decision to severely limit the program’s ability to generate revenues required to sustain and operate the program in a fiscally-responsible manner. Therefore, we respectfully request USDA consider the nutritional, operational, and financial consequences of limiting à la carte items that meet the recommendations of the Dietary Guidelines before issuing food and beverage specific limitations.

3.The proposed final regulations adopt an exemption for NSLP/SBP entrée items only. Side dishes served à la carte would be required to meet all applicable competitive food standards.

SNA Recommendation: As previously stated, SNA would like to emphasize that once an item, any item, is served that meets current meal pattern guidelines, it should be available for service without frequency restrictions. The proposed rule adds unnecessary and burdensome complexity for operators; it also poses significant financial challenges to many school districts that rely upon the sale of à la carte food and beverages to meet operating expenses. School nutrition personnel should not be restricted as to the frequency of serving specific items as long as those items adhere to the meal pattern guidelines and are consistent with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans.

4.The proposed final regulations implement a phased-in approach to identifying allowable competitive food under the general standard. This approach will allow three years for product manufacturers to reformulate their products, if desired, to qualify under the other criteria of the general standards. However, should the 2015 Dietary Guidelines for Americans identify additional nutrients of concern applicable to school-age children, the Department anticipates allowing these additional nutrients to qualify products until that criterion is removed on July 1, 2016.

SNA Recommendation: SNA would like to point out the cost and challenges for industry to reformulate. The way the interim final rule is written, these standards may only last for a few years. We would encourage waiting for the publication of the 2015 Dietary Guidelines to be finalized before assessing which nutrients of concern would qualify. Otherwise, this poses undue burden to industry to reformulate products multiple times.

5.The proposed final regulations adopt the standard as proposed which measures whole grains by weight or as the first ingredient.

SNA Recommendation: As stated throughout our comments, the competitive foods rule needs to remain consistent with the standards set forth for the meal pattern. SNA still supports modifying the whole grain requirement to be consistent with current guidance provided in Memo SP10-2012ar6 Revised January 25, 2013. This guidance states:

“1. How will schools identify whole grain-rich products?” “Element #2 Food must meet at least one of the following: The whole grains per serving (based on minimum serving sizes specified for grains/breads in FNS guidance) must be ≥ 8 grams. This may be determined from information provided on the product packaging or by the manufacturer, if available.”

Again, given that food items may often appear on both the reimbursable meal menu as well as the à la carte menu, they should meet the same standard.

6.USDA extends an exemption to the total fat and saturated fat standards for part-skim mozzarella cheese as appropriate, as there is an FDA standard of identity for part-skim mozzarella cheese. The reduced-fat cheese (and now part-skim mozzarella) exemptions do not apply to combination foods.

SNA Recommendation: SNA would like to reiterate that cheese is a good protein source and portion control would already be in place if meeting the meal pattern standards. Singling out this nutrient dense product regarding combination foods limits menu creativity and is inconsistent with the Dietary Guidelines. We want to restate the importance of maintaining consistency between competitive food standards and the requirements set forth for the operation of the National School Lunch Program to ease the burden of evaluating labels, menu design, training staff, and overall consistency in operations.

7.Sodium content in snacks is limited to 230 mg per item as packaged or served. Entrée items must have no more than 480 mg of sodium per item as packaged or served, unless they meet the exemption for NSLP/SBP entrée items.

SNA Recommendation: We urge USDA to not issue any sodium standard inconsistent with that required for the NSLP. Again, it would be impractical, if not impossible, to manage a different standard when some of the same food items may be served as either à la carte or among reimbursable meal selections.

8.The proposed federal regulations retain the proposed calorie limits for snacks and side dishes as 200 calories per item as packaged or served and 350 for entrée items.

SNA Recommendation: SNA does not support the 350 calorie limit for à la carte entrées as such limits are not consistent with standard procedures from HUSSC and IOM, and are not required if served as part of the reimbursable meal. SNA proposes an allowable calorie range for à la carte entrée items of 350-500 for Middle School and High School students with a weekly average of 450. School nutrition operators are in the business of feeding healthy foods to children. Many times kids come through the lunch line and are not interested in a reimbursable meal. In some situations, shortened lunch periods make it impossible for students to select and consume their meal in the time allotted and return to class. In these situations, students need the flexibility offered by nutritious à la carte foods and beverages. It is important that healthy offerings are available that keep kids coming to the school cafeteria. Student participation in the school nutrition programs is a critical measure of success. According to the School Nutrition Association’s 2013 Back to School Trends Report, declines in student participation are generally consistent across most district sizes and locations. Half of the School Nutrition Directors that responded to the survey reported smaller portions and calorie limits as a factor for this decline. The decline in participation was seen among all age groups, but most affecting high schools. Operators need flexibility in menu options that keep students satiated throughout the afternoon who may not choose the reimbursable meal.

9.USDA believes the most appropriate approach to specifying the standards for exempt fundraisers is to allow State agencies to set the allowed frequency. It is important to note that school districts may implement more restrictive competitive food standards, including those related to the frequency with which exempt fundraisers may be held in their schools, and further restrictions on the areas and times when exempt fundraisers may occur.

SNA Recommendation: We urge USDA to provide guidance with respect to allowable “frequency.” We also suggest the definition require an official approval of fundraisers by a school authority as a part of a local wellness policy. Even though it is addressed by USDA, SNA is gravely concerned with the onus of monitoring and tracking fundraisers falling upon school nutrition departments. Many states have guidelines in place around fundraisers. SNA would prefer that this policy be managed through wellness policies and best practices as operationally, states and localities are more equipped to manage the fundraising process.

The comments submitted by the national School Nutrition Association can be read in their entirety here: http://www.schoolnutrition.org/uploadedFiles/FINAL%20DRAFT%20Interim%20Final%20Rule%20Comments%209.24(2).pdf