Public schools to expel junk food next year

Three years ago, as part of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) was required to place nutritional standards on all foods served in public schools and allocate funding to various programs aimed at helping students eat healthier.  The act was billed as one of the biggest federal changes to public school lunch and breakfast programs in over 30 years and the herald of sweeping reforms.

 However, such changes were slow in coming and were not well received when they did.  In late 2012, initial attempts by the USDA to limit the calorie count in school lunches were met with protest and deemed heavy handed by students, faculty and parents.  Glitches in similar programs at the local level did little to help public opinion - such as when New York City officials admitted that they had gone too far in cutting calories and school lunches in the city were below the USDA's minimum recommendation.  Now, new federal regulations are set to take effect for the 2014-2015 school year - the "smart snacks" initiative aims to filter food choices based on fat, sugar and sodium content and eliminate empty calories in cafeterias, vending machines and snack bars.  But will it be received any better?

Empty calories in school snacks before and after the implementation of "Smart Snacks"

While this seems great on paper, the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act was off to a seriously bumpy start.  GOP lawmakers sponsored a counter bill - the No Hungry Kids Act against the calorie cuts and "nutrition nanny" role of the USDA last year, opponents claiming the cuts will leave schoolchildren with too little energy to properly function.  Whether or not this is true, it's clear that a segment of the American public will greet Smart Snacks with a certain level of skepticism.  Then there's big business to consider - how will snack food companies react to their products being kicked out of school districts?  It's too early to answer these questions but they're certainly something for us health nuts to keep in mind going forward...