Includes bibliographical references (p. 209-219).

Foundation for revising nutrition standards and meal requirements -- Schoolchildren's food and nutrient intakes and related health concerns -- Process for developing the nutrient targets -- Process for developing the meal requirements -- Iterations : achieving the best balance of nutrition, student acceptance, practicality, and cost -- Recommendations for nutrient targets and meal requirements for school meals -- Food cost implications and market effects -- Projected impact of the recommended nutrient targets and meal requirements -- Implementation, evaluation, and research.

"Ensuring that the food provided to children in schools is consistent with current dietary recommendations is an important national focus. Various laws and regulations govern the operation of school meal programs. In 1995, Nutrition Standards and Meal Requirements were put in place to ensure that all meals offered would be high in nutritional quality. School Meals reviews and provides recommendations to update the nutrition standard and the meal requirements for the National School Breakfast and Lunch Programs. The recommendations reflect new developments in nutrition science, increase the availability of key food groups in the school meal programs, and allow these programs to better meet the nutritional needs of children, foster healthy eating habits, and safeguard children's health. School Meals sets standards for menu planning that focus on food groups, calories, saturated fat, and sodium and that incorporate Dietary Guidelines for Americans and the Dietary Reference Intakes."--Publisher's description.

Electronic reproduction. Palo Alto, Calif. : ebrary, 2011. Available via World Wide Web. Access may be limited to ebrary affiliated libraries.