Describes a project which: (1) compared cost and nutritive value of six student lunches (type A school lunch, a-la-carte school lunch, lunch at home, vended lunch, fast-food lunch, and brown bag lunch); (2) used findings to make recommendations for improving student lunches; and (3) developed graduate student assessment/research skills. (JN)

To offset federal subsidy cutbacks, climbing food costs, and increasing wage demands, a Missouri school district hired a food management company. The district not only saved money, but also realized a profit, served more nutritious meals, needed less in-house recordkeeping, and concentrated more energy on education. (MLH)

Aseptic packages and the advantages of their use in schools are outlined. (MD)

A staff member of the Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service summarizes the history, cost, and benefits of the federal school nutrition programs and explains that schools must now verify information on a small sample of applications for free and reduced-price meals. (MLF)

Noting that sending information about children's health insurance through the school system is a very effective way to generate applications and enrollment for state health insurance programs, this issue brief is the first in a series to examine some of the innovative methods used to offer more children affordable health care. The brief presents a…

An update on the National School Lunch Program includes a list of some of the changes and innovations in types, quality, and packaging of commodity products provided to schools. (MLF)

At the Gates Chili High School near Rochester, New York, the cafeteria and kitchen are getting an overdue overhaul. Deep fryers and the fat-soaked foods that come dripping out of them are no longer welcome in the kitchens and dining halls of a growing number of the nation's schools and universities. Likewise, heavily marketed sugary soft drinks…

Reduction of cafeteria overcrowding was one of the tasks facing the new administration at Muir Elementary School in Long Beach (California). More than 90 percent of the 950 students were being served during one recess of 65 minutes in a cafeteria seating approximately 300 persons. A problem-solving team consisting of the principal, program…

Describes a program, developed in a small Vermont elementary school, that centered on world hunger and global awareness by involving students in helping stop food waste during lunch. Community members and businesses pledged money as an incentive for stopping waste, and the money raised went to UNICEF. (MD)

Frederick County, Maryland, is saving money by serving milk in plastic bags similar to those used in the space program by the astronauts. (Author/MLF)

The American Society of Dentistry for Children recognized the Milwaukee Board of School Directors' commitment to promoting better oral health and nutritional habits among school children. (Author/MLF)

Affluent and disadvantaged children stand in lunch lines and dine in school cafeterias as equals at the Bay Shore Schools (NY). Thanks to a computerized "LunchBox" point-of-sale system, cashiers know children by name, their birthdays, who suffers from which food allergies, and which children are entitled to free or reduced-price meals.…

Consistent with the intent of the original school-lunch program, created by Congress in 1946 to provide "nutritious agricultural commodities" to children, the major purpose of today's school-lunch program is to ensure that children, especially those from poor and low-income families, have nutritious food at school. Even as contentious and partisan…

The 2009 Newark Kids Count Report provides the first data on how the economic downturn in New Jersey and the nation is impacting the lives of children and families in Newark. It is no surprise that child poverty is on the rise again, after several years of progress in reducing the child poverty rate. Rising unemployment has impacted Newark…

This report describes the requirements of federally funded child nutrition programs, including the National School Lunch Program and the Special Milk Program; and a training program in child nutrition programs, the Network for Professionals. It gives a summary of the revenue sources for these programs and the requirements of the New Meals…