top of page

  Encouraging Schools to Adopt  

  Dietary Guidelines for Meals Served  

Challenge

Prior to the 1996 reauthorization of the Child Nutrition Act, there was a growing desire to ensure school meals adhered to the US Department of Agriculture and Department of Health and Human Services’ Dietary Guidelines for Americans; but many school administrators and food service directors viewed such requirements as impossible to implement and were voicing opposition. 

​

Intervention

Advocates for Better Children’s Diets, with support from fruit and vegetable organizations and the American Heart Association,

  • Brought together 32 nutrition, consumer, and education groups to develop a guide that could demonstrate how many school food service operations nationwide were already meeting the Dietary Guidelines while maintaining participation and initiating innovative marketing techniques.

  • Surveyed and analyzed responses from more than 100 schools nationwide that members from the Nutrition Education and Training Association identified as implementing in the school cafeteria.

​

Outcome
bottom of page