2005-06 School Year

Articles in the December Issue

From Sandra’s Desk:

We are well into the time for the holidays starting with counting our blessings and ending up with bringing in the New Year.  It's an intense time for everyone both at work and at home and sometimes we deal with that stress by eating.  For many of us, food is a traditional part of those holiday gathering.  I remember my grandmother being insulted if you thought you were leaving her place without having "coffee" and I don't believe she was that much different than most families.  As we gather at the holiday events around food, we hear a range of comments from the real:

  • Take two, they're small.
  • What's the matter, don't you like it?
  • Oh, just one more won't hurt.
  • Well, everyone else is having some.

To the ones in fun:

  • If we all eat the same, the calories cancel each other out.
  • Pick the broken ones because the calories have leaked out.
  • If I have a diet pop with my food that cancels the calories.

As we work into wellness policies at school, let us consider what we are doing in our time away from work, too. What are we saying to others and what are we telling ourselves?  It's a daily struggle to set that example but if we start each day trying to put our best foot forward, we will eventually get there!  That best foot forward might also involve steps in a walk!

Take time to enjoy things that don't cost:

  • the school concerts
  • relationships with others
  • a walk around the mall, the block, down a country road
  • the precious comments from children

Best wishes to you in your time through the holidays - and safe travels each day.

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Wellness Policies

The wellness policy development is progressing at a good pace given attendance at a recent seminar and questions that come in from the schools. Congratulations to all who have taken those first steps. There is still plenty of time to have this in place by the first day of school in the fall 2006.

The wellness policy has some requirements. It must:

  • Address the areas (nutrition education, physical activity, other school-based activities)

  • Establish nutrition standards

  • Contain assurance that guidelines for reimbursable school meals shall not be less restrictive than regulations and guidance issued by the Secretary of Agriculture

  • Establish a plan for measuring implementation of the school wellness policy, including designation of at least one person to maintain responsibility for program operation

Additional information on wellness policies at the state level can be found at http://doe.sd.gov/oess/cans/training/wellnesspolicy.asp.

Links to the US Department of Agriculture's website are coming soon to that website.

Plans are underway to provide training the Education Service Agencies. Information will be added to the website as well as be provided to the schools in the area as plans are firmed up.

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School Wellness Policies

Congress recognized that schools play a critical role in promoting student health, preventing childhood obesity, and combating problems associated with poor nutrition and physical inactivity.  This is more than just a health issue, since the healthy, nutritional astute and physically active child is more likely to be academically successful.

All agencies that participate in the National School Lunch, Breakfast, or Milk Programs are required to establish a local Wellness Policy by the beginning of school year 2006-2007.  The legislation places the responsibility of developing a wellness policy at the local level, so that the individual needs of each district can be addressed.  A team must be formed to develop the local policy.

The State Board of Education adopted a wellness policy on September 19, 2005.  A copy of that policy is enclosed.  It is also available on the Department of Education website at http://doe.sd.gov/oess/.  Look in the upper right-hand corner for the “school health” section.  The model policy is meant to be a guide for schools when they develop their local policy.

Enclosed is a document with frequently asked questions about the wellness policy requirement.  In addition, the South Dakota School Height and Weight report for 2003-2004 has been enclosed for your information.  For more information on this report go to www.healthySD.gov and click on schools.  The web sites for Child and Adult Nutrition Services and Coordinated School Health can also be found on this site.

Many school districts have already recognized the need to assist their students by encouraging healthy eating and physical activity.  We encourage you to take an active role in the development of the local wellness policy in your district. 

Additional questions can be addressed to Sandra (605-773-4746) or Kari (605-773-4257).

Enc: Frequently Asked Questions 2003-2004 School Height and Weight Report

Local Wellness Policy:  Frequently Asked Questions

1.       Are we required to adopt the entire Model Wellness Policy approved by the South Dakota State Board of Education?

No.  The local wellness committee must determine the content of each component based on district’s current practices, priorities, and future goals.  School districts must, at a minimum include the following:

  1. set goals for nutrition education

  2. set goals for physical activity

  3. set nutrition guidelines for all foods and beverages available on school campuses during the school day

  4. provide assurance that local guidelines for reimbursable school meals meet the program requirements and nutrition standards set forth by federal regulations

  5. set goals for other school-based activities designed to promote student wellness

  6. involve a broad group of members of the community (see Question # 2)

  7. draft a plan to measure the implementation and success of policies

  8. designate one or more persons within the district or at each school charged with operational responsibility for ensuring that each school fulfills the district's local wellness policy.

2.       Who develops the policy? 

Someone at the school needs to be given the authority and responsibility to convene a committee to develop the policy for review and approval by the board.  The law requires 1.) parents, 2.) students, 3.) food service representatives, 4.) school board members, 5.) school administrators, 6.) community members to be involved in the process.  It is important to involve those groups that will be affected by the policy.   It is also encouraged that committees include a school nurse, dietitian or dietary manager, medical professional, teacher/curriculum director, and/or local business representative.

3.       Does our policy have to be approved by the State Department of Education?

At this time, there is no requirement for approval by the Department of Education.  Your local school board or governing board is responsible for approving the policy.  It is expected that the policy will address the required areas as appropriate for the school

4.       Are there resources available to assist in developing this policy? 

There are many resources available.  Go to: http://doe.sd.gov/oess/cans/training/wellnesspolicy.asp

5.       When must the policy be in place?

The policy must be in place by June 30, 2006 or the first day of school there after.  Committees must consider the frequency of board meetings and the procedures for policy adoption to ensure that this deadline is met.  Local wellness policies are an ongoing project.  They should be continuously implemented, evaluated, and updated.

6.  When would some of the required areas not be appropriate for a school?

In most instances all required areas will be appropriate for all agencies.  Schools that participate only in the Special Milk Program and do not serve any meals could leave out the assurance regarding meals meeting USDA standards. 

Schools that currently do not have any vending machines are encouraged to list that as their policy.  There are likely solid reasons behind the school’s decision to do this, such as not appropriate to offer vending to elementary students, and those could be in the policy.   

Schools that do not have a concession stand or sell food in any other manner would not have to establish standards at this time; however, if a decision changes that operation at a later date, the standards would need to be established at that time. 

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Food Safety Training/HACCP

Food safety training was well attended during October and November. Fourteen separate trainings were held during that time. I hope that if you wanted training on developing/implementing a school food safety program you were able to attend one of the trainings.

Numerous questions came out of these training sessions and we will feature a couple questions (and their answers) between now and the end of the school year.

What is the difference between the Manager’s Checklist and Food Safety Checklist?

The Manager’s Checklist is actually called “The Food Safety Program Review Checklist” and is on page 68 of the 79 page USDA Guidance. This checklist is to be used as a “guide” when reviewing your food safety program at the beginning of the school year or when you have a “significant” change in your foodservice operation. The Food Safety Checklist is found on page 70 of the USDA Guidance. This four (4) page checklist is more specific and is to be used on a day to day basis. It is the recommendation of our office that you break the checklist down and complete a section or two daily.

How do I take the temperature of a chicken nugget?

The proper way to take a temperature of a chicken nugget using a bi-metallic stem thermometer is to insert the thermometer sideways (or the long way) through the chicken nugget, making sure that you have inserted the thermometer up to the “dimple” on the end of the thermometer.  Wait 15 seconds, and then record the temperature of the chicken nugget.  It is good to take the temperature of a number of the chicken nuggets in different places on the pan to ensure that all chicken nuggets are the correct temperature.  As you know, the temperature of the chicken nuggets in the middle of the pan will reach temperature last. So, always test a few from the middle of the sheet pan.


More Standard Operating Procedures Available

Additional standard operating procedures (SOPs) have been released from the National Food Service Management Institute (NFSMI). To find the additional SOPs go to: www.nfsmi.org. On the left hand side of the screen you will see “What’s New”. Click on that. Scroll down the page and under “Resources” you will see HACCP Based Standard Operating Procedures. Click on that. You will find all the SOPs that NFSMI has developed. These are available as either Word files or Adobe Acrobat files. Another nice feature on that page is a summary of corrective actions that you might want to consider for each of your SOP’s. To find this, scroll further down the page where the SOPs are listed, you will come to a heading titled: Developing a HACCP-Based Food Safety Program Worksheets section. Under that section you will see “Summary of Corrective Actions for HACCP-Based SOPs” with a Word File Icon and an Adobe Acrobat file icon. By clicking either of those you will open up pages that give you corrective actions for each of the SOPs that the NSFMI has developed.

Future Training

Once you have started working on developing your food safety program, you may have questions.  Our office will be announcing follow up training which we plan to hold via DDN in February.  Watch for dates/times/locations. This training will not cover the basic training which was held in October and November.  Training via the DDN will be interactive and will be based on a question/answer format.

Janelle Peterson
Child Nutrition Program Specialist
Child & Adult Nutrition Services

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Bright Ideas for Using the Eat Smart. Play Hard.TM NOW Available  

FNS has a new edition of Bright Ideas for using the Eat Smart. Play Hard.TM materials.  Bright Ideas provide unique ways to add some punch to your nutrition education efforts!  The latest edition, Bright Ideas 4 gives suggestions for making greeting cards, using the Power Panther Sticker, and showing the Video Messages.  These and many other materials are available on the Eat Smart. Play Hard.TM web site at www.fns.usda.gov/eatsmartplayhard/Collection/main.html. 

To view and download:

Bright Ideas 4:  www.fns.usda.gov/eatsmartplayhard/Collection/Files/BrightIdeas4.pdf

Bright Ideas 1 through 3:  www.fns.usda.gov/eatsmartplayhard/Collection/main.html

FNS Programs may order at: www.fns.usda.gov/eatsmartplayhard/orderform.htm

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Building for the Future with the CACFP

Agencies sponsoring the Child and Adult Care Food Program should be on the lookout for your complimentary copy of the “Food Purchasing for Child Care Centers” training materials from the National Food Service Management Institute (NFSMI).  These materials include a participant manual, instructor guide, and a CD-Rom (including a power point presentation of both manuals.  The goal of this resource is to assist you in training and implementing a food purchasing system centered on the steps in the food purchasing process.

Kids in the Kitchen:

Peach Bread Pudding

Adapted from Bread Pudding in What’s Cookin’ II as printed in Physical Activities and Healthy Snacks for Young Children; Team Nutrition Iowa

  •     5 slices of bread (whole wheat, raisin, or cinnamon)

  •     2 large eggs

  •     2 cups skim milk

  •     ˝ cup sugar

  •     1 tsp. vanilla

  •     ˝ tsp. cinnamon

  •     1–15 oz can chunky cut peaches well drained

  •     ˝ cup dried fruit of your choice

1)      Cut bread into 1-inch cubes.

2)      Mix eggs, milk, sugar, vanilla, and cinnamon.

3)      Add cubed bread mixture to eggs and let soak for 5 minutes.  Stir in peach chunks and dried fruit.

4)      Pour mixture into lightly greased 8”X8” baking dish.

5)      Bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes or until knife inserted in center comes out clean.

Snack Idea (1-5 year olds):

  • ˝ cup of Peach Bread Pudding and

  • ˝ cup of apple juice    

  • ½ cup sweet potato coins or fries and ¼ cup cooked pasta shapes sprinkled with Parmesan cheese.

Kids on the Move – Pencil Roll, Inch Worm and Rocker

From Physical Activities and Healthy Snacks for Young Children; Team Nutrition Iowa;

No equipment needed.  Mats are helpful.

If you are using mats, arrange one line at each mat.  If you are on carpet or grass allow 1-3 children to go at a time.  Allow children to practice as you give instructions, then repeat each activity as time allows.

The Pencil Roll begins with the child laying flat on his/her back, arms extended overhead (the arms can also be crossed on chest or held straight at sides).  Keeping their body straight like a pencil or log, they roll onto their stomachs.  Continue moving front to back.  Be sure the children roll in a straight line.  Repeat several times.

The Inch Worm begins standing with feet together and legs as straight as possible.  While holding the feet still, the child “walks” the hands forward until the body is straight.  Then holding the hands still, the child walks the feet towards the hands.  Repeat until a specific distance has been covered (for example 10 feet).

The Rocker begins with the child laying on her/his back.  Bend the legs bringing the legs towards the chest.  Hug the knees with both arms.  By moving the head forward and backward rock the body as vigorously as possible.

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Overview of the Grains/Bread Requirement

All reimbursable meals offered under the food-based menu planning option in the National School Lunch Program (NSLP), Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP, and Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) must include grains/breads food product(s.  A reimbursable school breakfast in the School Breakfast Program (SBP) and a reimbursable supplement in the CACFP or an Afterschool Snack may contain a grains/breads component.

Meal pattern regulations establish the minimum serving size(s) of grains/breads required for breakfasts, lunches, suppers, and supplements (snacks).  Meal pattern charts for each of the Child Nutrition Programs are on pages I-7 through I-27 of the Food Buying Guide.  

Use the following criteria as a basis for crediting items to meet the grains/breads requirement under the food-based menu planning approaches.

A.      All grains/breads items must be enriched or whole-grain, made from enriched or whole-grain meal and/or flour.  If using a cereal it must be whole-grain, enriched, or fortified.  Bran and germ are credited the same as enriched or whole-grain meal or flour.

B.      The label must indicate that 1) the food product is enriched or whole-grain, made from enriched or whole-grain meal and/or flour, bran, and/or germ, or 2) the cereal is whole-grain, enriched, or fortified.  If the food product is enriched, it must meet specific standards of identity for enriched bread, macaroni and noodle products, rice, or cornmeal.

C.      The food product must be provided in quantities specified in the appropriate program regulations.  One-quarter (1/4) of a serving is the smallest amount allowable to be credited toward the minimum quantities of grains/breads specified in program regulations.

To review a grains/breads food product to determine if it is creditable, Child Nutrition Programs need to verify that the food product is enriched or whole-grain, or that is made from enriched or whole-grain meal and/or flour, bran, and/or germ, or if it is a cereal, that it is whole-grain, enriched, or fortified.  Steps are listed on pages 3-3 thru 3-7 in the Food Buying Guide to help you determine if a food product is creditable towards the grains/breads component of a reimbursable meal.

For commercially prepared products, the information on the nutrition facts label will indicate the weight per serving size.  Compare this against the information in the grains/bread chart on page 3-15 of the Food Buying Guide in order to accurately determine how many servings it provides.  This is important when determining your weekly requirement of grains/breads, especially under the enhanced menu planning option when a higher number of grains/bread servings is required in the week.  You may wish to make a copy of the chart both front and back to have as a handy reference in your kitchen.

To count as one full serving, the types of food items listed in Groups A-G of the grains/bread chart must contain no less than 14.75 grams of enriched or whole grain, meal and/or flour.  The crediting of a food item as a grains/bread serving is determined by the total amount of enriched or whole grain meal and/or flour in the recipe divided by the number of servings the recipe yields.

Some things to keep in mind:

·          When serving tortilla chips read the nutrition facts label to determine how many chips are in a serving and compare it to the grains/bread chart.  For example, if the label indicates that 10 chips (13g) is one serving, then you know that you will need to serve 20 chips to make it one full serving if this is the only grains/bread offered that day since 25 g is a full serving under group B.  Regular potato chips are considered “other” foods and are not creditable for grains/bread.  Remember to record the serving size in ounces or grams per the nutrition fact label such as 20 @ 26g.

·          Remember to read the footnotes.  If you are offering a fruit turnover, it is allowed for desserts under the enhanced food based menu planning option and snacks served under NSLP, SFSP, and CACFP and for breakfasts served under the SBP, SFSP and CACFP.  It can only be considered an “extra” item under the traditional menu planning option for lunch and cannot count toward the grains/bread requirement.

·          If purchasing cookies, read the nutrition facts label to determine the weight of the cookie and compare to the grains/bread chart.  Cookies, bars, cakes, etc. can only be counted as grains/bread under the enhanced food based menu planning option or snacks under the NSLP, SFSP, and CACFP.  If the nutrition fact labels shows one cookie with nuts, raisins, chocolate pieces, etc) to be 17 grams then under group E it can only be counted as 1/4 serving. Otherwise 4 cookies would need to be served for one full serving.

·          If cookies, cakes, bars, etc are schoolmade, then the recipe will need to be calculated to determine creditable grains content per serving by following the instructions on pages 3-10 thru 3-13 of the Food Buying Guide.  One cookie is not necessarily one grains/bread serving.

·          If serving a purchased blueberry muffin for breakfast that weighs 2 oz, it can only be counted as one full serving under group D of the grains/bread chart.

·          Items such as pasta or rice must provide 1/2 cup to count as a full serving.

·          Ready to eat breakfast cereal (cold dry) must be 3/4 cup or 1 oz whichever is less to be a full serving.

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Nutrition Tidbits

Did you know that the average daily intake of food is increasing every year?  Americans on average eat 523 more calories per day than in 1970.  The amount of food eaten on average has increased by 16 % in during that time period.  When you look at individual food groups over that time period, vegetable intake increased by 24%, grain intake by 43%, added fats and oils by 63% and sweetener and sugar intake by 19%.  Corn sweetener of which high fructose corn syrup is included increased by 400%.

Resource: “U.S. Food Consumption Up 16 Percent Since 1970” by Hodan Farah and Jean Buzby in the electronic magazine Amber News, November 2005.  It is available on the www.nutrition.gov website.  

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Mark you calendars and save the date below to attend the S.D. School Food Service Certification Institute

June 18-23, 2006

Augustana College

Sioux Falls, SD

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Website Resources for Nutrition Education

There are tons of great websites with nutrition information for education purposes.  Every once in a while we feature websites that we think you may find helpful.   

Check out the Discovery website, http://school.discovery.com, where you can make a word scramble game with any nutrition or activity words you choose.  The Puzzlemaster program is free and a variety of puzzles can be made very easily.  Also at the site is free clip art that would be great for bulletin boards, menus, and school newsletters.  

Are you looking for PowerPoint presentations that you can use or adapt for your school?  A few of the topics available include portion distortion, the new MyPyramid, and food safety.  To learn more, visit the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension in Lancaster County Food web site at  http://lancaster.unl.edu/food.

See BAC! shake and access food safety coloring book pages for children at the US Dept. of Health and Human Services Pages for Kids at http://www.hhs.gov/kids/. 

The US Department of Education has compiled 40,000 education material/lesson plans from 100’s of sites.  It is available through the Gateway to Educational MaterialsSM available at:  http://thegateway.org/.  Type in “nutrition” to find free curriculum from a wide variety of sources such as National Geographic, PBS, the School Nutrition Association, state agencies and the Dairy Council.  Topics vary from how do they make green ketchup, to what is nutrition, to learning to share by making soup for the homeless.   

The School Nutrition Association has nutrition education resources and ideas as well, visit their education page at http://www.schoolnutrition.org/Index.aspx?id=1138.

Don’t forget to visit Team Nutrition from time to time as new resources become available every so often and there is a wealth of free resources for nutrition education from posters to curriculum.  Did you know that you could order MyPyramid for Kids materials as well as a copy of the large MyPyramid poster and a tear pad of the small Mypyramid posters for free?  In addition, a free educator kit with Power Panther songs and Go Fish game cards will become available in December.  For more information, please visit  http://teamnutrition.usda.gov/Resources/mypyramidclassroom.html.

The National Agricultural Library (NAL) has launched its redesigned Web site at http://www.nal.usda.gov as a gateway connecting users swiftly with the services of NAL and with the billions of pages of agricultural information within NAL collections and information resources.

The site offers several web pages with information focused on the needs of specific audiences, including kids and teens, librarians and USDA employees.

Through April 2006, NAL will introduce redesigned web sites on food safety, water quality, invasive species, human nutrition, alternative farming systems, animal welfare and technology transfer. New searching capabilities will mean that NAL databases can be searched at the same time as NAL web pages.

Last but not least, check out HealthySD.gov for nutrition and physical activity information that is relevant to South Dakotans.  It is available at www.healthysd.gov and if you click on schools, you will find information specific to nutrition and physical activity for SD schools.  Also there is a link on the site with a list of newsletter nutrition facts and statements that you can put in your school nutrition newsletters, on bulletin boards etc.

Other websites that you might find useful:

For Holidays: Color handouts
plus materials for healthful holiday education.
http://www.foodandhealth.com/go/to.cgi?ID=HOL

Clip Art for December:
Holidays and more!
http://www.foodandhealth.com/go/to.cgi?id=CAJ

December 2005 HealthCalendar Observances
http://www.foodandhealth.com/go/to.cgi?id=HCN

Monthly Recipe:
Lighter Brownies
(Great for upcoming holidays)
http://www.foodandhealth.com/go/to.cgi?id=MR

Monthly Tip:
Modifying Baking Recipes
(great for MyPyramid education around the holidays, too)
http://www.foodandhealth.com/go/to.cgi?id=MT

Healthy Holiday Recipe Collection
http://www.foodandhealth.com/go/to.cgi?id=HOLREC

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Exercise Program

This is an exercise program for those of us getting on in years (and weight). Here is a little exercise found for food service personnel for building arm and shoulder muscles. You might wish to adopt this regimen - 3 days a week works well.

Start by standing in the storeroom with a 5-pound potato sack in each hand.  Extend your arms straight out from your sides and hold them there as long as you can. After a few weeks, move up to 10-pound potato sacks, then 50-pound potato sacks, and eventually you should be able to lift a 100-pound potato sack in each hand and hold your arms straight out for more than a full minute!

Next, start putting a few potatoes in the sacks, but be careful not to overdo it at this level.

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HAPPY HOLIDAYS

From the staff at Child & Adult Nutrition Services