School Lunch Program Research Articles

Californian Schoolchildren’s Acceptance of and Preference for Pomegranate Compared to Two Lunch Fruit Standards

Specialty fruit crop species that are commonly served in school lunch programs include apples, citrus, and bananas. Among these three specialty crops, student food waste in primary and secondary schools in North America is enormous. In this postharvest sensory analysis study, schoolchildren were asked to rank and score for preference and acceptance of apples, oranges, and pomegranates. Minimally processed samples were used for each fruit type and the sensory analysis took place in classrooms in California, USA. ‘Red Delicious’ apple was generally less acceptable for multiple scored traits, and less preferred in consumer rankings, when compared with navel orange and ‘Wonderful’ pomegranate. Traits that were assessed by panelists included color, sweetness, tartness, texture, bitterness, and overall desirability. Both prepackaged arils and manually processed arils were used in the study and prepackaged arils were ranked lower when served alongside orange and apple compared with manually extracted, intact arils. Bitterness, color, tartness, and texture scores were significantly different among fruit types. This investigation indicates that Red Delicious is possibly a poor choice of apple cultivar for California schoolchildren and that pomegranate may be a possible alternative to apple, especially considering almost all apple cultivars develop brown flesh when cut. Whether pomegranate is feasible for school lunch programs remains to be seen; more research is needed to determine if pomegranate is a fruit that can be used to increase nutritive value and reduce food waste in public school nutrition programs.

Comparison of Food Selection with the National School Lunch Program Meal Pattern Guidelines and Assessment of Children's Food Intake and Waste Using Digital Photography in a School Cafeteria.

Background: School lunch is an important nutritious food source for children. The National School Lunch Program (NSLP) meal patterns guidelines have been established to promote healthier school lunches. This pilot study compared food selection during lunch in a school cafeteria with the NSLP meal pattern guidelines. Food intake and waste were also examined in relation to food selection. Methods: In a cross-sectional design, data were collected from children in the 1st, 6th, and 10th grades from a school in the United States. The digital photography of foods method was used to assess children's food selection, intake, and waste at lunch over 3 weeks. Results were presented as percentage, frequency, and mean ± standard deviation. Results: About 48 children from 1st grade, 47 from 6th grade, and 50 from 10th grade participated each day. Food selection in these grades consistently fell below the NSLP guidelines, with 69%, 79.8%, and 86.9% of children selecting less than the guidelines for energy, respectively. On average, only 10.4% of children selected vegetables at or above the guidelines. About 41% of the selected energy, 43% of fruits, 43% of vegetables, and 56% of milk were discarded as plate waste across all grades. Conclusions: Selection of energy and vegetables was consistently below the NSLP guidelines, yet almost half of the selected fruits, vegetables, and milk were wasted by children. Initiatives to enhance meal quality and variety, along with nutrition education interventions and school policies, are needed to improve food selection and intake and reduce food waste.

Analisis Framing Portal Berita Kompas.Com dan Mediaindonesia.Com atas Pemberitaan Program Makan Siang Gratis oleh Paslon 02 (Prabowo-Gibran) Pada Periode 28 November 2023 - 10 Februari 2024

2024 is a crucial year for Indonesia as it marks the presidential and vice-presidential transition. The General Elections Commission (KPU) has nominated three candidate pairs, one of which is Prabowo Subianto-Gibran Rakabuming Raka (candidate pair 02), who proposed a free lunch program. This program has sparked considerable debate in various media, prompting this study to analyze the framing of news coverage about the free lunch program by candidate pair 02 (Prabowo-Gibran) on the online news portals Kompas.com and Mediaindonesia.com during the period of November 28, 2024, to February 10, 2024. The research employs a descriptive qualitative method to describe or explain the underlying meanings of reality. Data analysis is conducted using Zhongdang Pan and Gerald M. Kosicki's framing analysis model, which includes syntactic, script, thematic, and rhetorical structures. The findings indicate that Kompas.com’s coverage is supportive of the free lunch program. On the other hand, the coverage on Mediaindonesia.com is firmly against the free lunch program

Compliance with USDA Meal Pattern in Arkansas Public Schools Participating in the National School Lunch Program

Compliance with USDA Meal Pattern in Arkansas Public Schools Participating in the National School Lunch Program

Pemodelan Text Mining untuk Analisis Sentimen Terhadap Program Makan Siang Gratis di Media Sosial X Menggunakan Algoritma Support Vector Machine (SVM)

The free lunch program is an initiative that provides free lunches and milk in schools and Islamic boarding schools, as well as providing nutritional support for children under five and pregnant women. Even though efforts to overcome stunting with this program are considered too late, providing free milk to pregnant women is considered more relevant for dealing with the stunting problem. Based on experience from various countries, the free lunch program shows various positive impacts, including increasing children's nutritional intake, increasing school participation, developing student character, and supporting the family and national economy. Discussions about this program received various responses from netizens, including platform X users. Online platforms have an important role in reaching and disseminating information about various social programs. In this context, the support vector machine method can be used to classify netizen responses to the free lunch program into positive and negative categories. It is hoped that this analysis will provide a deeper understanding of how this program is received by the general public, as well as provide suggestions for policy makers in designing social programs in the future.

Implementasi Algoritma Naive Bayes untuk Analisis Sentimen Terhadap Program Makan Siang Gratis

The work program promised by the 2024 Presidential Candidate and Vice Presidential Candidate pair, namely, Prabowo Subianto and Gibran Rakabuming Raka, one of which is a free lunch program, this program is an effort to improve community welfare, but this has attracted public attention on social media, one the other is platform X. The public response to the free lunch program is the main focus. In this research, researchers analyzed sentiment related to the free lunch program using the Naive Bayes method using the Python programming language on Google Colab to analyze sentiment towards social media users. X. the results obtained from 920 tweets data, there are 167positive value tweets, 744tweets are negative. The evaluation results with the confusion matrix showed an accuracy of 86.95%, with precision 93%, recall 61%, and F1-Score 65%.From the results of this research it can be concluded that the majority of the public who commented on social media X gave a negative response to the free lunch program. These results can be used as material for government evaluation in determining effective and efficient policies for society.

A Web-Based Thai School Lunch Program Promotes Children's Heights: A Cross-Sectional Study in Rural Schools.

Nutrition has an impact on development and linear growth. However, a few studies examine the connections between children's age-standardized height and their nutritional status and diet quality. This study aimed to find a relationship between dietary consumption and height for age among school students under a web-based Thai school lunch program. Anthropometric data and nutrient consumption were obtained from 24-hour records. Nutrient consumption was calculated using Inmucal. The parent and custodian's data were from the electronic health records. Children's heights were not correlated with parents' heights (P<0.720). Moreover, children with low height-for-age Z-score (HAZ) had significantly lower intakes of minerals (iron, magnesium, and selenium) and vitamins (B6, B12, C, and E). On the other hand, magnesium, selenium, vitamin B12, and vitamin E intakes of the children with normal HAZ were higher than their custodians. The Thai school lunch program effectively maintains the normal HAZ of children. Nutritional education in the community is recommended.

School Characteristics and Interscholastic Tournament Success

Interscholastic sports are part of the educational mission of the schools. However, parents, athletes, and others seem to emphasize winning, causing success (or, at least, the possibility of success) to be the target of state policies to promote competitive balance, following from an egalitarian approach to the theory of distributive justice. For example, most states have divided schools into separate class tournaments based on school enrollment. Many have also attempted to counteract perceived advantages held by private (non-boundary) schools by using multipliers to artificially increase private schools’ enrollment. Some states compensate for poorer schools’ perceived disadvantages by artificially decreasing enrollment for those schools with a high percentage of the student body eligible for the National School Lunch Program (NSLP). To enact effective policies, however, it is helpful to know what school characteristics are linked with winning. This project is a case study examining high school boys’ basketball in Indiana with a basic research question of what school characteristics influence tournament success. The literature and many current state policies propose that being private, larger, urban, wealthier, and from certain regions of the state might all improve tournament success. Each is examined for its effects on winning a state championship and on a more-expansive measure of success based on how far in the tournament a team progresses using data collected for all entrants in the Indiana boys’ basketball tournament over a 26-year period. The relative size of the student body seems to be the most consistently important factor in tournament success across classes. Being a private school or being an urban school are only factors in success for the classes of smaller schools. The region of the state is not shown to be significant to success. Of particular note, though there has been an increase in state policies targeting an imbalance caused by economic factors, there has not yet been an empirical finding of a link between these economic factors and success. This study does find limited evidence of such a link as schools with a lower percentage of students eligible for NSLP are more successful in the tournament. These results can help refine the knowledge of what does and does not affect tournament success and can guide policy changes aimed at improving competitive balance.

Documenting Food Insecure U.S. Children in the Wake of the Pandemic

Many households experienced significant negative economic impacts from job or work opportunity loss during the COVID-19 pandemic, including loss of income, loss of employer-provided health insurance, possible housing insecurity, and increases in food insecurity. Results from a sample of 929 U.S. households show that 53% of households with children reported some indications of food insecurity in 2020. The food security score divergences between households with and without children are stark, with food insecurity being worse among households with children. Food insecurity for households with children was exacerbated by pandemic-era disruptions; the societal costs of these food insecurity challenges are only beginning to be recognized. This analysis adds evidence to the notion of the uneven toll of the pandemic and documents explicit and disproportionate negative consequences for households with children. As new policies are debated and economic recovery continues, households with children who have fallen down the socioeconomic ladder should not be omitted. Much of the attention during the pandemic has been on older segments of the population more susceptible to COVID-19 and its complications, while younger children, who were less susceptible initially and/or less obviously impacted by the virus itself were discounted. Pandemic ramifications expand beyond morbidity and loss of life, and long-ranging implications, especially for households with children, should be recognized when recovery-era policies are enacted to ensure they are not left behind. In particular, as pandemic-era support programs, including school lunch programs, expire the tolls on children mount and may be underappreciated.

Long COVID and the Higher Risk of Food Insecurity Among Participants and Nonparticipants of Food Assistance Programs in the United States

BackgroundIn the aftermath of the COVID-19 public health emergency, it is important to understand the extent of socioeconomic burdens of long COVID, defined as continuation of symptoms after initial infection, including food insecurity. ObjectiveThis study aimed to assess the association between long COVID and family food insecurity among low-income individuals (or any of their family members living with them) who were participants and nonparticipants in public food assistance programs (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program [SNAP], Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children [WIC], and National School Lunch Program [NSLP]) in the United States. DesignThe study used an observational cross-sectional design. Participants/settingData on 7151 adults (aged 18+ years), with family income of < 200% of the Federal Poverty line, from the 2022 National Health Interview Survey, were analyzed. Main outcome measuresLevel of family food security, based on responses to a set of 10 questions measuring family’s food security during the past 30 days. Statistical analyses performedMultinomial logistic regression models were estimated to obtain relative risk ratios of marginal and low/very low food security, relative to the base outcome of high food security, for long COVID status. Multivariable models were estimated separately for the full sample and for subgroups of food assistance participants and nonparticipants. A seemingly unrelated regression (SUR) specification was estimated to assess whether the estimates were different across the participant and nonparticipant subgroups. ResultsCompared with individuals who never had COVID-19, the adjusted relative risks of experiencing marginal and low/very low food security were 1.42 (95% CI, 1.00–2.02) and 1.43 (95% CI, 1.08–1.91) times higher, respectively, for individuals who had long COVID. Although the adjusted risks were not observed to be statistically significant in the participant subgroup, among nonparticipants, adjusted relative risk ratios were 2.34 (95% CI, 1.43–3.82) and 1.56 (95% CI, 1.02–2.39), respectively. SUR results showed that relationships between long COVID and food insecurity were only different for marginal and not low/very low levels of food security between food assistance participant and nonparticipant groups. ConclusionsStudy findings highlight a significantly higher risk of marginal and low/very low- food security among low-income adults who had long COVID, especially those who were nonparticipants in public food assistance programs. Further research is warranted to explore the causal pathways of this relationship for informing policies to mitigate the burden of long COVID.

Mixed Methods Study Investigating Adolescent Acceptance and Implementation Outcomes of Serving Spicy Vegetables in School Lunch

BackgroundOnly a few adolescents are meeting their daily vegetable requirement. At the same time, spicy food is increasingly popular and familiar across cultures. ObjectivesTo explore the implementation of spicy vegetables into school meals, the primary objective is to determine adolescents’ preferred degree of hot spice on steamed broccoli. Secondary objectives include estimating the appropriateness and acceptability of spicy vegetables in the National School Lunch Program and identifying strategies to promote spicy vegetables within school meals. MethodsOne hundred participants between the age 11 and 17 y sampled 4 steamed broccoli florets with varying levels of a ground red and cayenne pepper spice blend (0, 0.9, 2.0, and 4.0 g). Participants rated their likeability of each broccoli sample on a 9-point hedonic scale and answered a survey assessing chili liking, chili consumption patterns, appropriateness, and acceptability. An interview assessed perspectives on spicy vegetables within school lunch.Regression analyses assessed relationships between participant attributes and sample ratings and survey outcomes. Agglomerative hierarchical cluster analysis was conducted to cluster together participants with similar sample liking ratings. ResultsSeventy-seven percent of participants reported that chili pepper makes food taste better, and 67% consumed spicy food weekly or daily. Chili likers (n = 41) were the dominant cluster group, compared with moderates (n = 31) and chili dislikers (n = 28). Thematic analysis results suggested that most participants support incorporating spicy vegetables into school lunch but mushy vegetable texture may undermine the impact of changing school vegetable spice levels. ConclusionsSpicy foods are commonly consumed by adolescents, and these findings support the inclusion of spicy vegetables in school lunch. Additional research is needed to identify policies and practices to improve the texture of vegetables in school meals and determine additional strategies to support cultural humility in child nutrition programs.

Measures of Economic Disadvantage Explain Outcomes Differently Across Geographies

Alternative poverty measures have been proposed in response to the emerging insufficiencies of the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) eligibility data. The analysis presented here involves seven poverty measures. Using outcome measures as a yardstick, we can assess how poverty measures explain these outcomes and note variations between geographical locales (assessing predictive validity). An analysis of 2019 data from Montana revealed that no poverty measure emerges as consistently meeting or exceeding the results found with the NSLP on the state level. Results are mixed based on locale (size) and distance from an urban centre, and within school communities.

Impact of free school lunch program on nutritional status and academic outcomes among school children in India: A systematic review

IntroductionMid-day meal programmes (MDM) were introduced in India to improve school attendance, nutritional status and educational outcomes of school children. Numerous primary studies have examined the impact of the MDM...

PERAN MAKAN SIANG GRATIS DALAM JANJI KAMPANYE PRABOWO GIBRAN DAN REALISASINYA

The ‘Free Lunch Program’ that was promised by Prabowo Subianto and Gibran Rakabuming Raka in their Indonesia’s 2024 presidential election campaign has sparked many controversies and uncertainties amongst the general crowd. In this context, this article will explore several controversial aspects of the program, including large financial challenge, its potential impact on the natural resources, fairness in its distribution, and the worry that this will be nothing more than a mere bluff. The large financial challenge comes from the allocation of the budget for this program, which causes questions on its long term longetivity. Other than that, the impact this program will have on the natural resources, especially in terms of the increasing food demand and its pressure towards our soil and water sources, also causes concerns about the sustainability of nature. The matter of whether it will be distributed evenly is also a matter of concern, with the fear that it won’t reach those who are actually in need. Additionally, the concern of this program being nothing more than a political bluff without any intentions of actually implementing it will also hinder its success. In facing those controversies and uncertainities, it’s important for the government to present a clear and effective plan to implement it, as wll as showing the much needed commitment in running the program properly. With that, this Free Lunch Program kan become an important instrument in increasing the people of Indonesia’s well-being, especially for those who are in need.

Beyond the lunchbox: Menu development guidelines for the Tasmanian School Lunch Project.

Universal school lunches hold the potential to improve student nutritional intake and access to food, but to do so menus must be nutritionally adequate. There is growing interest in school lunch programs (SLPs) in Australia, and one is currently being trialled in Tasmania. No nutrition guidelines currently exist for menu development in Australian schools. A desktop review of international SLPs was completed, and findings analysed in the context of Australian Nutrient Reference Values and Australian Dietary Guidelines to inform the development of Tasmanian SLP guidelines. Globally, SLPs are guided by portion sizes and/or nutrient criteria. SLPs (many of which address food insecurity) must provide children the opportunity to meet energy and nutrient needs, while minimising food waste. We propose energy-based nutrient criteria and qualitative recommendations for menu development. SO WHAT?: We have developed guidelines to inform the development of Tasmanian SLP menus. These guidelines may be applicable to other states and territories piloting similar programs.

Victorian (Australian) parents are receptive to a primary school-provided lunch program

PurposeThis study aims to examine Victorian primary school parents’ perspectives about a potential school-provided lunch program (LP).Design/methodology/approachAn online cross-sectional survey was conducted in Victoria, Australia, in 2022 to explore parents’ perceptions regarding the lunch menu, funding source, amount willing to pay, frequency of meals and special dietary needs of a school-provided LP.FindingsOver half of parents (57% out of 359) said they would allow their child to participate in a school LP, 34% were unsure and only 9% said they would not. The opportunity for hot cooked lunches at school and the perceived convenience for parents were the top two reasons for favouring such a program. Fifty-eight percent were in favour of hybrid-type funding from both the government and parents. The most preferred amount to pay per meal was AUD5-6 (43%), followed by AUD3-4 (25%). Parents expected meals to be healthy and made from whole food and cater to the special dietary and cultural needs of their children. They also expected enough time to be allocated so children could eat and enjoy the meals.Originality/valueTo the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to explore Victorian parents’ perceptions regarding the above aspects of a school-provided LP. The findings suggest that parents are receptive to a school-provided LP; they, however, did have several expectations regarding the menu and time for eating. These findings provide important directions for designing future school-provided LPs at primary schools in Australia.

Student Stakeholders’ Perspectives on Middle School Lunch Programs: A Qualitative Study

ABSTRACT Background Despite the establishment of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act (HHFKA) in 2010, child nutrition programs continue to experience challenges impacting participation. Prior qualitative studies have explored how to reduce barriers to implementation of these programs in schools, but few studies have examined attitudes held by students, who are the ultimate stakeholders in school lunch programs and their success. Purpose The present study explored children’s attitudes about food at school and suggestions for improving the school lunch program. Methods This qualitative study was conducted during the 2018–2019 school year in five middle schools. Students (N = 21) participating in a larger study were invited to take part in focus groups at school. Results Qualitative analyses revealed that children were knowledgeable about healthy eating but had strong opinions about disliking some foods served at school. Children had thoughtful ideas about improving school food and recommendations to encourage healthy eating among students. Discussion Insights from this qualitative investigation highlight the importance of considering the child's perspective when implementing food nutrition programs. Translation to Health Education Practice Health promotion efforts to improve the school nutrition environment include engaging families in school nutrition policy decisions and improved training and resources for food service staff. A AJHE Self-Study quiz is online for this article via the SHAPE America Online Institute (SAOI) http://portal.shapeamerica.org/trn-Webinars

EXAMINING COMMUNITY FINANCING OF SECONDARY EDUCATION LUNCH PROGRAMMES AND THEIR EFFECT ON PROVISION OF QUALITY EDUCATION IN KISUMU COUNTY, KENYA

The effectiveness of public financial support for secondary education is an issue of concern given the delay in submitting government grants, challenges of increased enrolment and inadequate resources to support quality teaching and learning. This study was based in Kenya; however, Kisumu County was chosen for its below-average KCSE mean score of 4.08 (D+) in 2017 compared to the average mean of 6 (C); low teacher-student ratio at 1:59 compared to the required 1:45 and absolute poverty index of 41% compared to the national poverty index of 35.6. The purpose of this study was to analyze community financing of public secondary schools and its effect on the quality of education in Kisumu County, Kenya. The specific objective of the study was to examine community financing of secondary school lunch programs and their effect on the provision of quality education in Kisumu County. A descriptive and correlation research design was used in the study. The target population for this study comprised 214 secondary schools in Kisumu County, 214 school principals, 214 BOM chairpersons, the CDE, 48 CBOs and 51,243 students. Questionnaires, document analysis and interview schedules for school principals, BOM chairpersons, the CDE, CBOs and students were used in this study. A stratified simple random sampling procedure was used to sample the 64 public secondary schools in Kisumu County from which 64 school principals, 64 BOM chairpersons, 16 CBOs and 387 purposively selected students were used for the study. The content and face validity of the instruments were determined by employing experts in the Department of Education Management and Foundations. The reliability of the instruments was calculated by using the test re-test and was calculated at Pearson r coefficient of 0.879. Qualitative data was transcribed and analyzed in emergent themes and sub-themes. The results showed that there was a positive correlation of 0.952 between Community financing, lunch programs and academic performance. The study concluded that community financing of adequate lunch programs significantly influences the academic performance of learners to a great extent. The study recommended that community financing of lunch programmes should be increased in order to achieve fully the objectives of the secondary education policy. The findings may be significant to policymakers, education planners and implementers on the requirement for the registration of institutions of higher learning.&lt;p&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt; Article visualizations:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;img src="/-counters-/soc/0707/a.php" alt="Hit counter" /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

Promoting Equity: Examining Participatory Justice in Free Lunch Program Planning to Combat Stunting in Indonesia

This study examines the organisation of complimentary meal initiatives in Indonesia through the lens of participatory justice. The study methodology employed is a normative juridical approach within a descriptive-analytical framework. Data were gathered via literature reviews and subjectively assessed. The results indicate that public policy should consider the active involvement of different societal stakeholders. Participatory justice fosters socioeconomic inclusivity and equity in the process of decision-making. While the free lunch program is a tangible measure to combat stunting, active involvement from the impacted individuals is crucial to guarantee the efficiency and equity of this program. Challenges in implementing participatory justice are the credibility of public involvement, dispute resolution, and the influence of experts in decision making procedures.

Victorian (Australian) parents are receptive to the idea of a primary school-provided lunch program: A mixed-method survey

School-provided lunch programs offer numerous benefits to primary school students including improved school attendance and performance, reduced undernutrition, reduced food insecurity, the opportunity to learn healthy eating, and the development of healthy dietary habits(1–3). Australia does not have an ongoing national school-provided lunch program that provides food for all students. To successfully implement a school-provided lunch program in Australian primary schools, it is essential to obtain the opinions of all key stakeholders, including parents. This study aimed to examine Victorian primary school parents’ opinions about a potential school-provided lunch program. An online cross-sectional survey with open- and closed-ended questions was conducted in Victoria, Australia, in 2022. Descriptive statistics and chi-square analyses were performed using SPSS software; thematic analysis was carried out using NVivo. Three hundred and fifty-nine parents responded to the survey. Fifty-seven percent of respondents said they would allow their child to participate in a school-provided lunch program, 34% were unsure and only 9% said they would not. The opportunity for hot-cooked lunches at school and the perceived convenience for parents were the top two reasons for favouring such a program. Fifty-eight percent were in favour of hybrid-type funding from both the government and parents, while 30% were in favour of being fully funded by the government. The most preferred amount to pay per meal was AUD5-6 (43%), followed by AUD3-4 (25%). When respondents were asked to rate the importance of six options in school-provided lunches (vegetarian, nut-free, dairy-free, gluten-free, egg-free, and vegan options), almost one-third of them selected having ‘vegetarian’ options as important or very important, whilst one-fifth selected ‘nut-free’, ‘dairy-free’, and ‘gluten-free’ options as important or very important. There were no associations between the parents’ or children’s socio-demographic characteristics and the likeliness of letting their children use school-provided lunches, funding preference, the amount willing to pay for school lunches, and the importance of different options. Respondents’ written responses revealed that they expected school-provided lunches to be healthy and made from whole food and cater to the special dietary and cultural needs of their children. Their other expectations included food being tasty and offered in a child-friendly way, having a variety of food offered, and having backup options if the children would/ could not eat those meals. They also expected enough time to be provided for eating lunches so children could eat and enjoy the meals. The findings of this study suggest that Victorian primary school parents are open to the idea of a school-provided lunch program, but they do have several expectations regarding the menu and time for eating. Program planners could use the findings of this study to create a school lunch program that aligns with the parents’ expectations and preferences.