Requirements for Lunch Program
by Chase Eck
August 29, 2012
As we start the 2012-2013 school year, your child may have told you that the school lunches have changed. USDA, along with Michelle Obama, have united to ensure school lunches are packed with the highest possible nutrients. Students will be offered 5 components every day. They include: Milk, Protein, Grain/Bread, Vegetable, and Fruit.
Students are required to take at least 3 of the 5 offered components. It is required that they must have 1/2 cup of fruit OR vegetable on their tray every day. Even if they will not eat it, they must take it.
Each component has a weekly average we cannot go under or above. For example grades K-5th need a minimum of 1 oz of protein each day with a maximum of 9 oz each week. Another example is that grades 9th-12th need a minimum of 2 oz of grain/ bread each day, with maximum of 12 oz each week.
We have added some new menu items such as Chicken Tetrazzini, Cowboy Cavatini, and Chicken and Noodles. All of these are "homemade" products. We hope your child will try the new menu items and enjoy them.
Please talk with your child about these new lunch requirements. Once we make the necessary changes, the state will visit each school to see if we are meeting each requirement. If Royal Valley meets the requirements, our district will qualify for an additional 6 cents per students lunch. This extra 6 cents per lunch will be applied toward the additional expenses the new requirements impose on the district.
