LINCOLN PARK, Mich. (WZMQ) – The U.S. Department of Agriculture has announced updates to nutritional standards for public schools. At a round table today the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, Tom Vilsack, and Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff discussed the role Michigan has played in leading efforts to meet the new goals when it comes to food access for students.
Emhoff joined students at Linclion Park Middle School to taste foods from industry providers that fit the new nutrition standards set by the USDA.
“School meals are already one of the healthiest meals a child eats during the day,” Emhoff said. “They’re good and we want to make them better.”
The new standards are the first updates to school food requirements since 2012 and will put limits on the amount of sodium and added sugar in students’ foods, and will also add adjustments for those with cultural or religious dietary restrictions. The updates are scheduled to be introduced gradually over the next 3 years starting July 1st, 2025.
The restrictions are set depending on the item. Breakfast cereals must have less than 6 grams of added sugars per ounce, yogurt no more than 12 grams per 6 ounces, and flavored milk 10 grams per 8 fluid ounces. Phase two starts in July 2027, requiring added sugars to make up less than 10% of calories per week, and requiring a 15% reduction in sodium for lunch and 10% for breakfast.
U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow explained that the efforts are part of a goal to combat not just food insecurity, but nutrition insecurity. In combination with the three state programs that provide food to students while school is out, she said the standards will ensure continued care.
Emhoff emphasized that Michigan’s free breakfast and lunch programs have made the state a leader in the administration’s efforts to end hunger and reduce diet-related disease by 2030. An initiative that was introduced at this year’s Whitehouse Conference for Hunger, Nutrition, and Health alongside a challenge to end hunger and build healthy communities.
Vilsack explained that the standards are being rolled out in phases to help schools in rural or disadvantaged areas adjust. He said resources will be provided to ensure the guidelines can be met, and that conversations with industry providers as are ongoing to make sure enough food is produced at an affordable cost for schools.
