Food and Nutrition report: meal participation up, sugar and sodium limits phased in

The Martin County Food and Nutrition Department told the school board on May 6 that meal participation and some revenue measures rose this year even as the program absorbed pandemic-era federal and commodity funding losses.

Laura Homadel, director of Food and Nutrition, said the department is approximately self-sufficient with an operating budget of about $13,000,000 and roughly 180 employees. She reported average daily participation increases of about 10% for breakfast (about 3,900 daily breakfasts) and 13.2% for lunch (about 10,000 daily lunches), and said daily snacks averaged about 1,000.

The department also outlined recent losses and one-time hits: Homadel said the loss of Department of Defense commodity allocations and changes to reimbursement waivers reduced revenues, and she cited an unreimbursed shortfall from an extra 40-cent reimbursement waiver that she said was “close to a million dollars.” Homadel also said the department absorbed commodity reductions and other losses while rolling out scratch-cooking initiatives and cafeteria remodels at five schools.

“We source locally grown products for our meals and we have a fresh fruit and vegetable program in some of our schools,” Homadel said. She described a new Fresh Eats line that allows high-school students to assemble bowls or salads in a Chipotle-style service and said the department is using combi-oven technology and “home scratch” cooking to meet upcoming nutrition standards.

Yvonne Pottsko, the district registered dietitian, reviewed federal and state nutrition limits that will take effect in phases. For breakfast next school year, Pottsko said cereal will be limited to 6 grams of sugar and yogurt to 12 grams of added sugar per 6-ounce serving; flavored milk will be limited to 10 grams of added sugar. She noted a larger change scheduled for 2027 that will limit added-sugar calories at breakfast to 10% of calories and will further reduce sodium.

Pottsko also summarized the Smart Snacks standards for items sold a la carte or in vending machines: snacks may not exceed 200 calories, sodium is limited to 230 mg, total fat must be 35% or less of calories, saturated fat limited to 10% and trans fats are prohibited. Beverages have size limits by grade: elementary students may not receive more than 8 ounces of milk or juice; middle and high students are capped at 12 ounces.

Board members asked about expanding the Fresh Eats concept to middle schools, substituting artificial sweeteners, monitoring Smart Snacks product quality and whether the district will consider banning energy drinks brought from home. Homadel and Pottsko said the program would like to expand Fresh Eats once staffing and training are in place, that the department will not substitute artificial sweeteners for sugar limits, and that principals have authority to restrict items such as energy drinks at their schools.

Why it matters: The nutrition changes will affect items available to students districtwide and have operational implications for purchasing, staffing and equipment. Homadel said the program is largely funded through its own revenues, federal reimbursements and program-specific grants, not the district’s general fund.

What’s next: The department said it will continue recipe testing, expand scratch-cooking where feasible and bring program changes to stakeholders. Board members asked staff to report back with details on funding sources for recent cafeteria remodels and to continue updating the board as new reimbursement and commodity information becomes available.