New guidelines target school nutrition

School cafeterias would have to hold the fries - and serve kids more whole grains, fruits and vegetables - under the government's plans for the first major nutritional overhaul of students' meals in 15 years.

The Agriculture Department proposal announced Thursday applies to lunches subsidized by the federal government. The guidelines would require schools to cut sodium in those meals by more than half, use more whole grains and serve low-fat milk.

They also would limit kids to only one cup of starchy vegetables a week, so schools couldn't offer french fries every day.

Thursday, one Long Island food official applauded the plan.

"A lot of that is very positive," said Kevin Hannon, director of the Long Beach school district's food nutrition services. Hannon said his school district, which employs chefs and cooks many meals from scratch, has been following many of the proposed requirements for years.

"By setting a national standard, manufacturers can make foods that meet those guidelines," he said.

Hannon said that could save school districts money; they could avoid negotiating individual contracts for healthy foods because manufacturers would be mass-producing healthy foods.

Meanwhile, some school groups have criticized efforts to make meals healthier, saying it will be hard for already stretched schools to pay for the new requirements.

The new guidelines are based on 2009 recommendations by the Institute of Medicine, the health arm of the National Academy of Sciences.

The subsidized meals that would fall under the guidelines proposed this week are served as free and low-cost meals to low-income children.

The new law for the first time will extend nutrition standards to other foods sold in schools that aren't subsidized by the federal government, including "a la carte" foods on the lunch line and snacks in vending machines.

The announcement is a proposal, and it could be several years before the rules require schools to make changes.

- With AP