Improving School Food Environments Through District Level Policies: Findings from Six California Case Studies

Publication Date:

Publisher: Samuels & Associates

Author(s): S.E. Samuels; L. Craypo; M. Boyle; S. Stone-Francisco; L. Schwarte

Research Area: Health

Type: Report

Abstract:

This report summarizes the findings of six case studies of school districts in California that sought to develop detailed policies governing the availability of snack food in schools. California has been a national leader in the drive to limit the availability of unhealthy snacks sold within schools. The participating districts were San Francisco, Capistrano, Eureka City, Hemet, Los Angeles and Oakland. Each district followed different paths to develop and approve a policy for competitive food sales within schools. Several districts formed nutrition advisory committees which played key roles in the process.



A first step in developing district policies was determining what percentage of foods and beverages met California's state standards and each district's standards, for sugar and fat content. State standards are due to become mandatory in the near future. Among the six districts, an average of 82 percent of beverages met state standards but only 21 percent of food items did so. Sales venue was important in determining compliance, as 74 percent of foods sold by school food services met at least the district standard, if not the state standard, but only 55 percent of food sold in vending machines and 45 percent of items sold in school stores did.



A reservation consistently expressed by stakeholders in this process was that schools would lose out on revenue used to generate funds for student activities if popular beverages and foods were removed. New fund-raising strategies to market healthier foods and beverages may be needed to offset potentially decreased revenue, although there were no documented drops in program funding linked directly to any nutrition policy.



This report suggests that other schools can use the successes of these six districts as a road map for quickly and successfully adopting better nutrition standards. Key elements of successfully doing so are: incorporating strong data; building collaborative relationships with stakeholders; setting clear definitions of acceptable and unacceptable foods and beverages; maintaining good communication with students, parents and staff; having a well-defined chain of authority within schools and at district level; and acting preemptively to address potential financial losses.