August 29, 2008 -- The Foodservice Achievement Management Excellence (FAME) Award program’s call for nominations is fast approaching—September 26, 2008. The program honors outstanding school nutrition professionals in six categories. Nominations can be made online or via a downloadable form at www.fameawards.net.
Do you know an innovative school nutrition director or supervisor in your district—or a neighboring one? Of course you do! This profession boasts numerous individuals in every state who display incredible creativity, innovation, quality and business expertise in meeting challenges and seizing opportunities in the direction of successful school meal programs.
Now in its 20th year, the FAME Awards program is a prestigious competition recognizing the accomplishments and innovations of school nutrition professionals. Categories include Gold Star Director of the Year Award, Silver Star Leadership Award and Silver Star Spirit Award. Directors who are new (five years or less) to the profession at that level are eligible for the Silver Rising Star Award, while those directing small school districts (less than 10,000 enrollments) can be considered for the Silver Star Special Achievement Award. The program also recognizes those who support school nutrition programs without being in the profession itself (Silver Star Friend of Child Nutrition).
Nominees in all categories except Silver Star Friend of Child Nutrition must be SNA members, but nominations can be submitted by anyone familiar with the candidate, including vendors, school administrators, association leaders and so on. There are only a couple weeks left to nominate your peers, colleagues and friends (or to arrange to have your outstanding efforts be nominated). Log on to www.fameawards.net to download a nomination form today!
The competition is sponsored by Basic American Foods, Hobart Corporation, Schwan’s Food Service and Tyson Foods. The selection committee includes 2008 FAME Award winners and industry publication editors. The winners will be presented at a special ceremony held in conjunction with SNA's 2009 Child Nutrition Industry Conference in New Orleans, Louisiana, in January.
Related Links:FAME Awards
CNIC 2009
August 28, 2008 -- Have you thought about what being a District of Excellence can do for you? Earning the District of Excellence Distinction can:
• Become an excellent marketing tool to show your operation’s caliber compared to others across the nation. • Advance community recognition and public awareness about your program’s quality. • Boost staff confidence and morale. • Enhance SNA’s efforts to showcase the professionalism and high quality of school nutrition operations to the media, the public, and allied organizations. • Pave the way for your district to receive the 2009 District of the Year Award!
The District of Excellence program is the formal recognition component of the Keys to Excellence national best practice standards. The prestigious District of the Year Award recognizes one District of Excellence each year that has demonstrated that their operation is extraordinary through a competitive grant application process. The District of the Year Award recipient for 2009 will receive a grant award of up to $25,000 to further advance the district’s food and nutrition operations.
Keys to Excellence is the cornerstone of SNA’s certification program as well as the foundation to the District of Excellence and District of the Year recognition programs. Keys Express is the online, self-assessment tool for school nutrition professionals to use to assess, benchmark, and improve their district school nutrition operations in the four key areas: Administration, Communications and Marketing, Nutrition and Nutrition Education, and Operations. This self-assessment process is the essence of the program as well as a valuable opportunity and resource for all school nutrition program operators.
Follow these steps to become a District of Excellence 1. Use the Keys Express to compare your district’s school nutrition operations to the national best practice standards. 2. Download and review the District of Excellence Application http://www.schoolnutrition.org/Content.aspx?id=2406 3. Complete and submit your application by either deadline during this school year: December 1, 2008 or March 31, 2009.
Districts that receive the District of Excellence Distinction following either of the two 2008-2009 application deadlines will be eligible to complete a competitive grant proposal in May 2009 to be considered for the 2009 District of the Year Award. Related Links:Keys to Excellence website ApplicationFAQs
USDA continues to hold listening sessions for Reauthorization 2009. On Wednesday, August 20 2008, more than 100 people attended a listening session in Atlanta, Georgia. Josephine Mack, president of Georgia SNA, presented remarks on behalf of the School Nutrition Association. SNA members from Kentucky, Mississippi, and Florida, also attended the hearing. The topics discussed included national school nutrition standards, increased funding, expanding school breakfast programs, limiting indirect costs, and commodities for school breakfast.
Two more listening sessions are scheduled. SNA members are strongly encouraged to attend the sessions scheduled for September 10th in Chicago, or September 11th in Denver. Illinois SNA past-President Paula DeLucca will speak at the Chicago session, while Colorado SNA Past-President Susan Rondinelli will present at the Denver session. If you plan on attending, please make sure that you RSVP at the USDA CN Reauthorization Listening Session page. Space is limited at each of these sessions.
If you are unable to make the listening sessions, you can still make your voice heard. Submit your written comments to USDA prior to October 15, 2008. Also, please be sure to send a copy of your remarks to SNA at servicecenter@schoolnutrition.org. SNA has posted a PowerPoint presentation detailing the Association’s reauthorization priorities. Please visit the 2009 Child Nutrition Reauthorization page for more details, as well as copies of the remarks presented by SNA leaders during the listening sessions. For additional information, please visit the USDA CN Reauthorization Listening Session page.
Adult obesity rates continue to rise, according to a report released on Tuesday, August 19, 2008 by the Trust for America’s Health (TFAH). According to the report, F as in Fat: How Obesity Problems are Failing in America, 2008, adult obesity rose in 37 states last year. More than 25 percent of adults are considered obese in 28 states, up from 19 states last year.
As in previous years, the report argues that federal, state, and local governments need to develop and implement more policies that encourage Americans to make healthier lifestyle choices, including through school interventions. Improving the nutritional quality of school food, as well as increasing physical activity and nutrition education programs are among the key recommendations made by the report authors.
The report does acknowledge that many communities are passing policies to encourage healthy eating and exercise habits. It claims, however, that these policies are not being implemented or adopted fast enough to stop the growing rate of obesity. Unfortunately, this diminishes state and local school district efforts to improve student access to healthy school meals, especially as school districts struggle with soaring food costs.
Research has continually proven that school meals served through the National School Lunch Program are a part of the solution to promoting a healthy childhood weight:
The report largely ignores the efforts of tens of thousands of communities that have passed and implemented local school wellness policies, as required by the 2004 Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act. The report also fails to acknowledge the significant strides school districts have made in offering healthy food choices to students. According SNA’s 2008 Back to School Trends Report:
The skyrocketing cost of food remains a significant barrier to school districts. Additional funding must be allocated to school nutrition programs if they are to continue serving students high quality, nutritious meals everyday.
[1] Rainville, A. Nutritional Quality of Reimbursable School Lunches Compared to Lunches Brought From Home, The Journal of Child Nutrition & Management, Spring 2001.
School Meals Proven a Health Choice
Trust for America's Health Report 2008 (PDF)
August 20, 2008 -- All good things must come to an end and, unfortunately, so did this year’s Annual National Conference (ANC) in Philadelphia. If you were among the many school nutrition professionals in attendance, you know that this year’s event was filled with fresh ideas, good times, new and old friends and, most importantly, fond memories.
To help you preserve these memories for years to come, this year SNA and EZ Event Photography are offering keepsake print photos of ANC activities, exhibits and other conference excitement. With well over 2,000 images to choose from (sorted by event), you may find candids of yourself, your coworkers, your friends and many of your favorite moments. You can select either print photos (8x10, 5x7 or 4x6) or digital files (via e-mail or CD). To view and order photos, visit www.ezeventphotography.com/login.php, and type in “ANC” as both the login and password.
Also, be sure to check out the handouts of many of this year’s education session presentations, available at http://docs.schoolnutrition.org/meetingsandevents/anc2008/handouts.asp.
Finally, be sure to mark your calendar for ANC in Las Vegas, June 29-July 2, and stay tuned to http://docs.schoolnutrition.org/meetingsandevents/anc2009 for conference information!
ANC 2008 Session Handouts
ANC 2008 Photos
ANC 2009
August 14, 2008 -- Even though ANC 2008 ended just last month in Philadelphia, it is already time to consider how you can use ANC 2009 to enhance your career or volunteer your time. ANC offers many opportunities for SNA members to share their professional expertise and gain national exposure. Here are a few ways that you can be involved in making ANC 2009 the premier school nutrition event of the year: Speak at Educational Sessions SNA is now accepting submissions for 1-hour concurrent breakout sessions through the ANC 2009 Call for Proposals through September 30, 2008. Access the form and instructions at: http://docs.schoolnutrition.org/meetingsandevents/anc2009/cfp.asp
Present a Pre-Conference WorkshopSNA is also accepting proposals for pre-conference workshops. For more information, and to submit your proposal, contact SNA at jskolmowski@schoolnutrition.org. Be a Presider Presiders introduce speakers during educational sessions and help SNA ensure that all sessions run smoothly. SNA will begin accepting applications for ANC presiders in November. "Showcase" Best Practices and ResearchShare successful practices within your program or school nutrition research by presenting a poster at ANC's Child Nutrition Showcase. SNA will be collecting poster ideas and abstracts beginning January 6, 2009 through March 6, 2009. Volunteer to be a Host or Hostess SNA is seeking local volunteers from Nevada and neighboring states to help SNA make ANC 2009 the best experience possible for all attendees. Hosts and hostesses volunteer approximately 8 hours throughout the conference in exchange for a small discount on registration. Hosts and hostesses provide assistance at a variety of functions including the education sessions, research “showcase”, culinary demonstrations, awards ceremonies, special events, and more. For more information, contact SNA at nhaliburton@schoolnutrition.org
Provide a Culinary Demonstration SNA invites ANC exhibitors to apply for a limited number of opportunities to share culinary tips, techniques, and recipes with approximately 200 ANC attendees through culinary demonstrations held in the exhibit hall. The ANC 2009 culinary demonstration application will be available in September and applications will be accepted until December 1, 2008.
August 13, 2008 -- Registration for the 2008-2009 "Eat Smart, Get Moving!" official contest will remain open at www.eatsmart-getmoving.org until September 16, the first day of this year's program. The interactive program is organized into 4 phases over 30 weeks, running from September 16, 2008 until April 13, 2009. Teams choose a mascot, who leads them on a virtual walk from Philadelphia, PA, site of SNA’s 2008 Annual National Conference, to Las Vegas, NV, where SNA’s 2009 Annual National Conference will take place.
"Eat Smart, Get Moving!" is a free, interactive, team-based personal wellness program designed to help SNA members and other school faculty and staff meet the Dietary Guidelines recommendations for daily servings of low-fat dairy, whole grains, and fruits and vegetables as well as daily minutes of physical activity.
Individual and team goals progressively change with each phase to help participating teams get closer to reaching the Dietary Guidelines recommendations.
Key Features for 2008-2009! Based on feedback from participating teams, SNA has continued to add and upgrade features to the program. Key features for this year’s program include:
Register today! Become a team leader for an 2008-2009 "Eat Smart, Get Moving!" team! Help us encourage other school teams in your district and state to enter the 2008-2009 "Eat Smart, Get Moving!" contest to join SNA on a personal wellness journey to Las Vegas!
For complete information on registration, program rules, prizes, and incentives, review the contest rules: http://www.eatsmart-getmoving.org/rules.asp/. "Eat Smart, Get Moving!" is made possible by SNF and the National Dairy Council.
East Smart, Get Moving!
August 12, 2008 -- On August 6, 2008 S&S Foods LLC., an Azusa, Calif., firm, recalled approximately 153,630 pounds of frozen ground beef products because they may be contaminated with E. coli O157:H7, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service announced.
The following products subject to recall include:
30-pound boxes of “742798 MFST, 100% GROUND BEEF BULK, 80/20, 1LB. BRICK.” These boxes of frozen ground beef products bear the establishment number “EST. 20375” inside the USDA mark of inspection, and a case code beginning “06238” ink-jet printed on the side of the box. This product was intended for food service and institutional use and not for direct retail purchase.
Additionally, recent recall notices for chicken and beef issued by Tyson Foods, Inc. (August 6, 2008) and Coleman Natural Meats (August 8, 2008) did not affect product sent to the school foodservice market, according to representatives from each of those companies.
August 7, 2008 -- A new study published by the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), Kids’ Meals: Obesity on the Menu, evaluated the nutritional content of kids’ meals at the top 25 restaurant chains. Using IOM standards and the 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans for comparison, CSPI found that 93% of the hundreds of possible kids’ meal combinations exceed recommendations for calories, fat and sodium for 4-8 year old sedentary children. In fact, 100% of possible meal combinations at Kentucky Fried Chicken, Sonic, Jack in the Box, Chick-fil-A and Taco Bell exceed calorie limits – with some meals providing nearly 1000 calories. On the positive side, Subway restaurants offers eight different meals which meet nutrition standards and they are the only restaurant not to provide soda as the default kids’ meal beverage. Restaurants report working towards providing healthier options such as low fat milk, fruit, juice and yogurt, however they stress that parental responsibility is the key to good childhood nutrition.
In contrast, meals provided through the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) are by federal law to meet nutrition guidelines based on the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. No more than 30% of calories can come from fat and less than 10% from saturated fat. School lunches provide one-third of the Recommended Dietary Allowances of protein, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, iron, calcium and calories. These guidelines apply over the course of one week of school lunch menus.
On tight budgets of only $2.57 per meal, schools nutrition programs across the country provide over 30 million meals featuring low fat milk, fruits and vegetables, whole grains and lean meats each school day. The 2007 School Nutrition Operations Report conducted by SNA found that fresh fruits and vegetables are offered daily in 96% of schools districts. Salad bars or pre-packaged salads are offered on a daily basis in nearly 90% and vegetarian options are served in over 50% of districts. Students that eat meals served through the National School Lunch Program are also more likely to be at a healthy weight. Research published in the Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine concluded that “girls in food insecure households had significantly reduced odds of being at risk of overweight if they participated in the [National School Lunch, School Breakfast and Food Stamp Programs].” The research highlights the importance of food assistance programs to low-income children not only in addressing hunger “but also in potentially protecting them from excess weight gain." School nutrition professionals are committed to providing safe and nutritious meals to all children, while fighting childhood hunger and overweight.
See Related Links for the full CSPI report
August 6, 2008 -- Action for Healthy Kids (AFHK) issued a report on the status of local wellness policies, noting the tremendous progress made during the two short years that districts have had to implement this federal unfunded mandate. The report also outlines the challenges and opportunities that remain for school districts and school nutrition program working to implement local wellness policies. The report, Progress or Promise? What’s Working For and Against Healthy Schools includes a summary of previously released research as well as survey data from a variety of school and community stakeholders on the effectiveness of physical activity, nutrition education and school nutrition policy components.
Among the items included in the report with regard to school nutrition are:
The report features a full page interview with SNA President Dr. Katie Wilson, SNS on the need for standardized nutrition education, financial challenges due to rising costs and certification for school nutrition professionals.
The report focuses on several key challenges moving forward such as the need for additional funding for school nutrition programs to continue to offer nutritious school meals given rising food, labor and indirect costs. The School Nutrition Association (SNA) is seeking to address this and other challenges through child nutrition reauthorization, due to be taken up by Congress in 2009. SNA is calling for adequate funding for school nutrition programs as well as uniform national nutrition standards for foods and beverages sold outside of the school meal programs.
Full Report (PDF)
August 5, 2008 -- Your employees have completed a ServSafe course, you have a HACCP plan in place, and you hold regular food safety in-services, your operation should be running like a well-oiled and food-safe machine, right? Not so fast. According to a recent study published by the Journal of the American Dietetic Association, barriers to the implementation of food safety practices have little to do with knowledge of proper food safety behaviors. Researchers out of Kansas State University looked at foodservice employee perceptions of barriers to three crucial food safety practices: handwashing, using thermometers and cleaning work services. They found an employee’s perception of a barrier was likely to prevent proper food safety behaviors from occurring. The most commonly identified barriers for all three practices were inadequate training, time constraints, inadequate resources, and inconvenience to perform the practices. Other interesting barriers to note included no incentive to practice food safety, a manager not monitoring or even inconvenient location of sinks.
While this research was completed in restaurant foodservice, the same challenges exist for school nutrition professionals. Foodservice employees play an important role in preventing foodborne illness outbreaks. In fact, the top three factors resulting in foodborne illness outbreaks are poor personal hygiene, cross contamination and time/temperature control. So, how can you educate and motivate your employees to practice proper food safety behaviors each and every day?
School nutrition professionals are committed to the highest standards in food safety. The majority of foodservice staff (86.7%) receives basic food safety training before they are allowed to prepare or serve food. (CDC, School Health Policies and Programs Study). HACCP programs are implemented in 88.7% of schools nationwide (SNA Operations Report, 2007). In addition, an FDA report, rated schools with the highest food-code compliance among both commercial and institutional foodservice establishments. As you continue to work to reduce foodborne illness risk factors and improve the overall safety of the meals the meals you provide, review the barriers your employees are facing and take the steps necessary to overcome them.
It’s time to go “Back to School” with the award-winning School Nutrition magazine. The annual August issue focuses on valuable strategies to help you jumpstart another great school year—no matter what the challenges are!
First, meet Dr. Katie Wilson, the 2008-2009 president of the School Nutrition Association (SNA). Hailing from Onalaska, Wis., this high-energy school nutrition director is ready to take on any role to meet every challenge, from national nutrition standards to the rising costs of food. Get to know your new leader better by kicking back and reading her story in “Hats Off for Katie Wilson.”
Next, are you stocked up with the key “ingredients” for innovative school menus? In some school districts, a breakfast burrito or a pita sandwich represent exotic fare. But in others, menus are going a giant step further—introducing kids to new tastes, promoting nutrition education and bringing the local communities closer together. Wow! After you read “Lunch for the Whole Bunch,” the way you think about your menu may never be the same.
Here’s more important news for 2008: Get rid of that orange SNA certification handbook. That’s right: Just throw it in the trash. Beginning September 1, 2008, SNA is launching a new program, featuring changes that make certification easier to attain and maintain, while upholding the high standards of professionalism required in today’s school nutrition environment. Learn all about it in “Certifiably Better.”
But that’s not all. Don’t forget to crack open the issue of SN magazine that came to you in the mail, because it has special, additional stories, from creative promotional ideas in “Making Merry” to operators’ experiences with holding cabinets in “Hold Everything!”
Plus, the new SchoolNutrition.org offers an array of great tools right at your fingertips. When you’re done reading the magazine, find a full calendar of events for the school year in SNA’s online Promotional Calendar. And be sure to check out the resources at Running Your Program and Marketing Your Program.
It’s the beginning of a new year. It’s the beginning of new challenges, new stories—and new successes. And SN will be with you, every step of the way.
August 1, 2008 -- This week the Food Research and Action Center (FRAC) released Hunger Doesn’t Take a Vacation, a report on participation in the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) during July 2007. The analysis compares participation in the National School Lunch Program during the school year with participation in the Summer Nutrition Programs demonstrating that in comparison the SFSP continues to fall short in reaching eligible low-income children.
Fewer than one of out every five eligible children participated in July 2007, according to the FRAC report. While 16.3 million low-income children receive school lunch during the regular school year, only 2.85 million children (or about 17.5%) get summer food when school is out.
Low participation in the Summer Nutrition Programs is tied to an increase in food insecurity rates during the summer. According to research by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, food insecurity rates increase during the summer for households with children, and the increase is greater for states with low participation in the Summer Nutrition Programs.
While the report only covers last summer, anecdotal reports from school nutrition directors that operate summer feeding programs indicate that the current summer has seen an increase in student participation. Late last year, Congress took a step forward in improving the Summer Nutrition Programs by expanding to all states the Simplified Summer Food Program. Originally developed as a pilot program by Congress in a limited number of states, the Simplified program reduces administrative barriers and makes it easier for providers to get the maximum reimbursement. From 2000 to 2007, the 13 states originally allowed to use the Simplified program saw their summer numbers climb by 54 percent, while states never added to the pilot (until 2008) dropped by 14.4 percent. This summer (2008) marks the first time all 50 states have been eligible to participate in the Simplified Summer Food Program.
The Food Research and Action Center’s annual summer report, Hunger Doesn’t Take A Vacation, gives data for all states and looks at national trends. The report measures participation in the Summer Nutrition Programs by comparing the number of children receiving summer meals to the number of children receiving school lunch during the school year. FRAC measures national summer participation during the month of July, when typically all children are out of school throughout the month and lose access to regular year school meals. The report is available online through the link below.
Hunger Doesn’t Take A Vacation FRAC Report (pdf)