Snack cakes, nachos and sugary sodas would be expelled from the nations schools under new regulations proposed by the USDA. Subsidized school breakfasts and lunches already must meet healthy-eating standards. For the first time, however, the new rules would set fat, calorie, sugar and salt limits on almost all foods sold in schools-including ” la carte” lunch lines, snack bars and vending machines. Foods such as baked chips, trail mix, diet sodas and lean burgers would replace candy, fatty snacks and caloric drinks, with a 200-calorie limit on most school snacks. Elementary and middle-school students would have to skip sodas entirely, choosing from water, low-fat milk or 100% juices instead.
“Parents and teachers work hard to instill healthy eating habits in our kids,” said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, “and these efforts should be supported when kids walk through the schoolhouse door.”