School Nutrition Programs

Crediting is identifying that a food item meets a component in a certain quantity. There are always two parts to crediting: the component and the amount. The four acceptable tools for crediting are the Food Buying Guide (FBG), Child Nutrition Labels (often called CN Labels), USDA Foods Fact Sheets, and Product Formulation Statements. Note that recipes are not on this list. While recipes may be required for certain food items, a recipe can never stand alone in crediting. Every ingredient in a recipe must be credited using one of the four tools listed above. It is the responsibility of the Local Education Agency (LEA) to assure that food items meet the meal pattern requirement for the component. It is the LEA’s responsibility to request and verify that the supporting documentation is accurate.

Food Buying Guide (FBG)

The Food Buying Guide is the basis for all crediting in school nutrition programs, and the other three tools are based on the information in the FBG. The FBG is used to determine crediting of all meal components (meats/meat alternates, grains, fruits, vegetables, and fluid milk). The FBG specifically separates vegetables by the following subgroups: beans & peas, red/orange, dark green, starchy, and other.

The original hard copy cover is shown here:

The FBG has been updated since USDA issued the original hard copy. If a school still has a hard copy of the Food Buying Guide, the school must ensure that the most recent copies are being used. The FBG is utilized to determine component yield information, food quantities to purchase, and the specific contribution each food makes toward the meal pattern requirements.

The interactive Food Buying Guide Calculator for Child Nutrition Programs is available online. It has individual calculators for each of the 6 food groups outlined in the FBG and a self-tutorial instructional video.

Child Nutrition (CN) Labels

For a manufacturer to obtain a CN label for a food item, an evaluation of a product's formulation by Food and Nutrition Services (FNS) is required to determine its contribution toward the meal pattern. It allows manufacturers to state this contribution on their labels. The program provides a warranty against audit claims for purchasers of CN labeled products. The CN Labels are typically seen only for items that contain meat/meat alternate. An example of a CN Label is shown here:

A legitimate CN label must have the following:

• the CN logo, which is a square/rectangular border;
• the meal pattern contribution statement;
• a six-digit product identification number;
• USDA/FNS Authorization Statement; and
• the month and year of approval found at the end of the USDA/FNS authorization statement.

Acceptable ways to document CN labels include:

• cutting out the CN Label directly from the box; or
• photocopying the CN Label from the box; or
• photographing the CN Label from the box.

It is also allowable to use a watermarked CN Label; however, if a watermarked label is provided, an invoice with that product must also be provided.

For more information on CN labeling, visit the CN Labeling Program web site.

USDA Foods Fact Sheets

USDA Food Fact Sheets provide equivalent yields on USDA foods.  A sample portion of the USDA Food Fact Sheet is shown here:

USDA Food Fact Sheets are available in the following food categories: grains/breads, meat/meat alternates, vegetables/fruits, and other. For each food category, the fact sheets are listed alphabetically by commodity title and include the USDA 4-digit commodity code.

USDA Foods Product Information Sheets

Product Formulation Statements (PFS)

An appropriate PFS will provide specific information about the product and shows how the food credits toward the meal pattern. When purchasing a processed product without a CN Label, the LEA may request a signed PFS on manufacturer’s letterhead that demonstrates how the processed product contributes to the meal pattern requirements.

More information on PFS is available online.

A standardized recipe is one that has been tried, adapted, and retried several times by a given foodservice operation and has been found to produce the same food quantity and quality every time when the exact procedures are used.

Reasons for Using a Standardized Recipe

• Standardized recipes ensure that the product will be of the same quality each time the food is prepared.
• Using standardized recipes will result in the same yield in product each time the recipe is prepared.
• Time and money will be saved because employees are familiar with recipes.
• The facility has better control of inventories and costs.

Parts of a standardized recipe are:

• Recipe title
• Recipe category corresponding to a food component
• Ingredients
• Weight/volume of ingredients
• Nutrients per serving
• Critical control points
• Preparation directions
• Cooking temperatures and time
• Serving/portion size
• Equipment and suggested tools for serving
• Recipe yield

The USDA recipes were revised in 2005 and have been standardized, edited for consistency, and updated with critical control points (CCP).

• Standardized USDA recipes for schools
• Additional recipes and resources
• Additional training resources for standardizing recipes - The Institute of Child Nutrition (ICN)

Sources for Standardized Recipes for Schools

• USDA “What’s Cooking USDA Mixing Bowl” - Recipe Database - Search for large quantity recipes that are standardized for foodservice operations
• Georgia Grown School Recipes - School Recipes and Nutritional Information - Find recipes from seasonal Georgia foods developed for schools
• Oklahoma Cooking for Kids - Recipes and Training Materials for Schools - Find standardized recipes developed by chefs for schools
• Vermont FEED - New School Cuisine Cookbook: Nutritious and Seasonal Recipes for School Cooks by School Cooks - The first-ever effort by Vermont public school cooks who wrote a hands-on cookbook for their peers. Download a free copy of the cookbook at Vermont FEED
• American Culinary Federation - Chef  & Child Foundation Recipe Collection - Search recipes developed by the Chef & Child Foundation

The Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act provides an additional 6-cents per lunch reimbursement to school districts that certified to be in compliance with the new meal patterns. The increased reimbursement, a significant investment in improving the quality of school meals, are provided to school districts once they meet the new meal patterns published in the final rule on January 26, 2012. Funding became available to school districts starting October 1, 2012.

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