SNA gears up to build effective wellness policies for schools

Nation's Restaurant News, August 21, 2006 by Donna L. Boss

As I walked through the exhibit hall at the nnual national conference for the School Nutrition Association, or SNA, in July in Los Angeles, all seemed remarkably upbeat. In the years that I've attended the show, I have never seen so many promotions touting products promising to contribute to children's health, fitness and, of course, wellness, as I did this year. The atmosphere was rather celebratory: Within weeks, each school district participating in the National School Lunch Program would be required to have in place a local wellness policy, as specified in the Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act of 2004. Manufacturers were proudly displaying the results of months I of hard work to develop products that fit into this new wellness agenda.

However, in conference sessions--particularly one led by Marshall Matz, SNA's legal counsel--the atmosphere was far more subdued. Operators, manufacturers, suppliers, administrators and legislators recognize they must bring clarity to the food and nutrition program components of wellness policies. The complex issues involved may require contentious debate in the coming year.

Here is what's on the table. First, the U.S. Department of Agriculture is updating the meal pattern requirements to make them consistent with the goals of the 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. These may be out next spring, according to Stan Garnett of the USDA. A comment period will follow, and implementation may begin in 2008. In response, SNA member committees have presented recommendations to the USDA, said Erik Peterson, SNA's director of public awareness.

Second, there's the issue of national school nutrition standards that would address school meals and foods and beverages sold outside of school meal periods. Currently, there's a "patchwork of local, state and voluntary nutrition standards for school foods and beverages, resulting in higher prices and a frustrating regulatory landscape," explained Cathy Schuchart, SNA's staff vice president for government affairs. Last spring, draft legislation was under development that would give the secretary of agriculture authority over non-school meal foods and beverages, and tighten the secretary's authority over pre-emptive school meal nutrition standards.

Third, SNA has worked concurrently with the National Alliance for Nutrition and Activity to advocate for the Child Nutrition Promotion and School Lunch Protection Act introduced in the House and Senate by a bipartisan group of members of Congress. The legislation would expand the time and place rule, thereby giving the USDA authority to set nutrition standards for foods and beverages sold through vending and a la carte, and require the USDA to reevaluate the definition of "foods of minimal nutritional value."

Fourth, several participants in the School Foodservice Roundtable--a network of manufacturers and suppliers, facilitated by Patricia Phillips--sent a letter to USDA secretary Mike Johanns containing several recommendations. One states that regulations applying to the school nutrition environment should apply to all programs nationwide and supersede state and local policies.

Fifth, voluntary guidelines for nonschool meals will be issued this fall by the Institute of Medicine's Committee on Nutrition Standards for Food in Schools.

As debate continues, federal versus state authority will be a particularly decisive issue. Since 2003, 30 states have passed their own regulations and set standards, which may or may not be scientifically healthy for kids or realistic to implement. Operators are asking manufacturers to develop products that meet different criteria, which can result in high product costs. On the other hand, if federal standards take precedence but have no teeth, what good is served?

Danny Seymour, SNA's chairman of the Public Policy & Legislative Committee and director of foodservice for the Pittsburgh school district, raised additional questions: Who pays for and who monitors compliance? What's more, if states have authority, will school districts that can't afford to comply with state regulations be eligible for federal reimbursement?

The school foodservice community can't provide a panacea for all that threatens children, but it can find a way to unite quickly and do what is sensible on a national scale to make sure wellness rises to the top of every school district's priority list. Nothing less than bold, assertive action is needed to reduce childhood obesity and related diseases.

Donna L. Boss is the founder of Boss Enterprises, d/b, a communications and marketing firm in New York.