School nutrition group calls for increased federal support

A new School Nutrition Association survey report says economic, procurement and regulatory issues are obstacles facing school meal administrators as pandemic-era assistance comes to an end.

With additional regulations for school meal programs being finalized by the USDA, SNA's "2024 Position Paper" urges Congress to increase funding, preserve successful current nutrition standards and provide every student equal access to healthy school meals, according to a news release.

“Research shows students eat their healthiest meals at school, and school nutrition programs need Congress’ support to sustain that achievement," School Nutrition Association President Chris Derico said in the release. “Inadequate funds and overly restrictive rules will soon cripple school meal programs.”

Federal reimbursements must account for the “uniquely high cost” of operating K-12 programs, Derico said. School meal planners must procure more expensive low-sodium and whole grain foods to meet strict nutrition standards, according to the release.

“Meanwhile, we believe all students deserve equal access to nutritious meals at school, and in schools that must charge for meals, we see inequities for children as well as unpaid meal debt increasing financial losses,” Derico said.

SNA's "2024 School Nutrition Trends Report" details survey responses from 1,343 school meal program directors across the country, according to the release.

Virtually all respondents (99.3%) reported challenges with increasing costs, and 83.9% indicated costs are a significant challenge, the release said. Just 17% of respondents indicated the current reimbursement rate is sufficient to cover the cost of producing a lunch. 

When asked about the financial sustainability of their programs in just three years, 91.6% of directors flagged concerns.

Insufficient reimbursements also limit schools’ capacity to offer competitive wages in a tight labor market and sufficiently staff kitchens to increase scratch cooking, according to the release. Staff shortages were the second most prevalent challenge, reported by 90.5% of respondents.

The survey also revealed persistent procurement problems in the K-12 market. These findings are particularly worrying given proposed federal nutrition standards, the release said, adding that USDA is scheduled to release final, more restrictive long-term rules for school meals in April 2024.

With a lack of any nutrition mandates for dining or retail foods, limited demand for low-sodium and whole grain products in the retail market leaves many manufacturers and distributors hesitant to prepare and stock specialty items for K-12 customers, SNA said in the release.

Although the severity of disruptions has eased slightly since SNA’s 2023 survey, large majorities of respondents continued to cite a variety of procurement issues, including menu item shortages (87.2%) and menu items discontinued (80%).

Respondents reported a variety of menu improvements, such as adding choices (64.6%), increasing locally grown foods (55.6%) and conducting student taste tests (66.0%) to boost student acceptance of healthy options.

In March, school nutrition professionals from across the country will meet with members of Congress to discuss SNA's "2024 Position Paper" as part of the 52nd annual Legislative Action Conference, the release said.