Dive Brief:
- To limit reliance on ultra-processed foods in school meals, a majority of school nutrition directors report needing additional resources that include funding, menu development, culinary training, staffing, and equipment and infrastructure, according to survey data released Tuesday by the School Nutrition Association.
- In September, the Trump administration’s “Make Our Children Healthy Again” strategy report stressed a need to reduce ultra-processed foods in school meals as a way to address childhood chronic disease.
- To do that, schools will need to cook more scratch-prepared meals, SNA said in its survey report. The association also found that 71% of school nutrition directors said they already offer scratch-prepared entrees on a daily or weekly basis.
Dive Insight:
As the federal focus on school nutrition continues to take aim at ultra-processed foods, school nutrition directors are increasingly reporting concerns over the future of their meal programs compared to previous years.
More directors — 95% — said during the 2025-26 school year that they are seriously or moderately concerned about the financial sustainability of their school nutrition programs three years from now. That’s an uptick from the 92% of directors who expressed the same concerns during the 2023-24 and 2024-25 school years.
The survey conducted in October had 1,240 school district respondents.
SNA said in a Tuesday statement that it expects federal recommendations will limit ultra-processed foods when the U.S. Department of Agriculture and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services jointly release updates to the Dietary Guidelines for Americans this year.
The association added in a position paper it released Tuesday that current federal nutrition standards limiting calories, sodium and added sugar already ensure that school meals are the "healthiest" ones that Americans eat. Partnering K-12 food suppliers are also proactively removing artificial dyes, additives and other concerning ingredients used in school meals, SNA said.
“Any new rules limiting UPFs in schools must ensure meal programs are permitted to serve nutrient-dense, pre-prepared foods,” SNA’s position paper said. “Schools are simply not equipped to scratch prepare all menu items — more than 93% cited the need for more staff, culinary training, equipment and infrastructure to reduce reliance on UPFs.”
There is currently no uniform definition of ultra-processed foods. However, HHS, USDA and the Food and Drug Administration published a request for information in July as the agencies work to define the term. The public comment deadline was set for September, but was later extended to October.
Ultra-processed foods typically contain added ingredients like sugar, salt, fat and artificial colors or preservatives, as defined in a 2020 article by Harvard Health Publishing.
California has touted itself as the first state to ban ultra-processed foods in K-12 through a recently signed law that will phase those products out of school meals starting in 2029. The state previously enacted legislation banning food dyes in school cafeterias in addition to implementing universal school meals to make food healthier and more accessible to students.
SNA’s position paper said that cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and Medicaid — as passed by Congress in the July “One Big, Beautiful” budget law — will reduce the number of children who are automatically certified for free and reduced-price meals. Consequently, fewer schools will be eligible for a federal program known as the Community Eligibility Provision, which helps high-poverty schools and districts serve free meals to all students.
In order to protect universal school meal programs like the Community Eligibility Provision, SNA also called on Congress to pass S.3281, a bill that would repeal the SNAP provisions in the “One Big, Beautiful” budget law. The association also called for Congress to pass legislation that would increase the federal reimbursement rate for school meals and fund equipment and infrastructure upgrades in school cafeterias.
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