Food choice, plate waste and nutrient intake of elementary- and middle-school students participating in the US National School Lunch Program

Smith, Stephanie L.; Cunningham‐Sabo, Leslie

doi:10.1017/s1368980013001894

Cited by 119 publications

(144 citation statements)

References 22 publications

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“…Other recent reports have also used digital photography to assess food intake in cafeteria or free-living settings and have found it to be a reliable estimation. [32][33][34] None of those studies have evaluated the relationship of FV to total energy, although one reported 43% average waste of fruit and 31% waste of vegetables among middle school students, and 37% and 34% (respectively) among elementary students, with total energy consumed lower than recommendations by the Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act of 2004. 33 For comparison, third through fifth graders in this study, currently participating in an F2S program, wasted an average of 26% of fruit and 27% of vegetable by volume (data not shown).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fruits and Vegetables Displace, But Do Not Decrease, Total Energy in School Lunches

Yoder

Schoeller

2014

Childhood Obesity

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Background: The high overweight and obesity prevalence among US children is a well-established public health concern. Diet is known to play a causal role in obesity. Increasing fruit and vegetable (FV) consumption to recommended levels is proposed to help reduce obesity, because their bulk and low energy density are believed to reduce energy-dense food consumption (volume displacement hypothesis). This study tests this hypothesis at the lunch meal among upper-elementary students participating in a Farm to School (F2S) program.Methods: Digital photographs of students' school lunch trays were visually analyzed to identify the food items and amounts that were present and consumed before and after the meal. Using the USDA Nutrient Database, total and FV-only energy were calculated for each tray. Analysis of total-and non-FV energy intake was performed according to (1) levels of FV energy intake, (2) FV energy density, and (3) previous years of Farm to School programming.Results: Higher intake of FV energy displaced non-FV energy, but total energy did not decrease across FV energy intake groups. High-FV-energy-density trays showed lower non-FV energy intake than low-FV-energy-density trays (470 -179 vs. 534 -219 kcal; p < 0.0001). Trays from schools with more previous years of F2S programming decreased total and non-FV energy intake from school lunches ( p for trend < 0.0001, both).Conclusions: Increased FV consumption reduces non-FV energy intake, but does not reduce total energy intake. Therefore, this study does not support the volume displacement hypothesis and suggests calorie displacement instead.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fruits and Vegetables Displace, But Do Not Decrease, Total Energy in School Lunches

Yoder

Schoeller

2014

Childhood Obesity

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“…Researchers have reported high plate waste values at school canteens (6)(7)(8)(9) . In Portugal, studies developed in this setting found waste values higher than 30 % (10,11) and significantly higher than the acceptable limit of 10 % (12) .…”

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Strategies to reduce plate waste in primary schools – experimental evaluation

Martins

Rodrigues

Cunha

et al. 2015

Public Health Nutr.

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Objective: To determine and compare the effect of two interventions in reducing the plate waste of school lunches. Design: A between-group analysis was conducted among children from three primary schools: (i) a group receiving intervention A, designed for children and focusing on nutrition education and food waste; (ii) a group receiving intervention B, intended for teachers and focusing on the causes and consequences of food waste; and (iii) a control group with no intervention. For each child, physical weighing of individual meals and leftovers was performed on three non-consecutive weeks at baseline (T0), 1 week (T1, short term) and 3 months (T2, medium term) following the intervention. Plate waste was recorded for a total of 1742 lunches during 14 d over eight different menus. Setting: Portuguese public primary schools in the city of Porto. Subjects: All fourth-grade children (n 212) attending the three preselected schools. Results: After intervention A focusing on nutrition education designed for children, a decrease in soup waste was observed compared with the control group. The effect was greater at T1 (−11·9 (SE 2·8) %; P < 0·001) than at T2 (−5·8 (SE 4·4) %; P = 0·103). The plate waste of identical main dishes decreased strongly at T1 (−33·9 (SE 4·8) %; P < 0·001). However, this effect was not found at T2 (−13·7 (SE 3·2) %; P < 0·001). After intervention B involving teachers, plate waste decreased at T2 (−5·5 (SE 1·9) % for soup; −5·4 (SE 2·4) % for identical main dishes). Conclusions: Nutrition education designed for children was more effective in the short than the medium term. Thus, this kind of intervention was not effective in reducing food waste in the medium term. In contrast, an intervention focusing on teachers revealed better results in the medium term than in the short term.

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“…Previous research suggests that food waste in US public schools is substantial in magnitude and value (8,16,17) . The NSLP has been the subject of the majority of related studies (16,(18)(19)(20)(21)(22)(23)(24)(25)(26)(27)(28) .…”

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confidence: 99%

‘It’s just so much waste.’ A qualitative investigation of food waste in a universal free School Breakfast Program

Blondin

Djang

Metayer

et al. 2014

Public Health Nutr.

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Objective: To understand stakeholders' perspectives on food waste in a universal free School Breakfast Program implementing a Breakfast in the Classroom model. Design: Semi-structured focus groups and interviews were conducted with school district stakeholders. Inductive methods were used to code resulting transcripts, from which themes were identified. The analysis provides a thematic analysis of stakeholders' perspectives on food waste in the School Breakfast Program. Setting: Ten elementary schools in a large urban school district implementing a universal free Breakfast in the Classroom model of the US national School Breakfast Program. Subjects: Elementary-school students (n 85), parents (n 86), teachers (n 44), cafeteria managers (n 10) and school principals (n 10). Results: Stakeholders perceived food waste as a problem and expressed concern regarding the amount of food wasted. Explanations reported for food waste included food-related (palatability and accessibility), child-related (taste preferences and satiation) and programme-related (duration, food service policies, and coordination) factors. Milk and fruit were perceived as foods particularly susceptible to waste. Several food waste mitigation strategies were identified by participants: saving food for later, actively encouraging children's consumption, assisting children with foods during mealtime, increasing staff support, serving smaller portion sizes, and composting and donating uneaten food. Conclusions: Stakeholders recognized food waste as a problem, reported myriad contributing factors, and have considered and employed multiple and diverse mitigation strategies. Changes to the menu and/or implementation logistics, as well as efforts to use leftover food productively, may be possible strategies of reducing waste and improving the School Breakfast Program's economic, environmental and nutritional impact. Keywords Food waste National School Breakfast ProgramBreakfast in the Classroom Elementary school Students

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Food choice, plate waste and nutrient intake of elementary- and middle-school students participating in the US National School Lunch Program

Cited by 119 publications

References 22 publications

Fruits and Vegetables Displace, But Do Not Decrease, Total Energy in School Lunches

Fruits and Vegetables Displace, But Do Not Decrease, Total Energy in School Lunches

Strategies to reduce plate waste in primary schools – experimental evaluation

‘It’s just so much waste.’ A qualitative investigation of food waste in a universal free School Breakfast Program

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