General School Meals Reports and Studies
Cornell Center for Behavioral Economics in Child Nutrition Programs
Cornell University.
The center conducts research to improve children's acceptance of healthy school meals and also disseminates the findings to school meal program staff and other program stakeholders through its Smarter Lunchrooms.org website.
Improving School Foods Through the Team Nutrition Program (PDF | 207 KB)Bridging the Gap.
This brief examines participation in the Team Nutrition program among U.S. elementary schools for four school years, from 2006-07 to 2009-10. It also describes the types of foods and beverages available as part of lunch meals served by schools that did and did not have access to Team Nutrition resources during that period.
Evaluation of the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program - March 2013USDA. FNS. Office of Research and Analysis.
This report describes findings from the evaluation conducted during the 2010–2011 school year. The evaluation had two components: (1) an impact study to estimate program impacts on participating elementary students and schools; and (2) an implementation study to examine how the FFVP operates in the selected elementary schools.
Effects of Food Assistance and Nutrition Programs on Nutrition and HealthUSDA. Economic Research Service.
Four reports summarize published research, evaluate data sources, and review research designs to assess the effect of USDA's food assistance and nutrition programs.
- Effects of Food Assistance and Nutrition Programs on Nutrition and Health: Volume 1, Research Design, FANRR-19-1
- Effects of Food Assistance and Nutrition Programs on Nutrition and Health: Volume 2, Data Sources, FANRR-19-2
- Effects of Food Assistance and Nutrition Programs on Nutrition and Health: Volume 3, Literature Review, FANRR-19-3
- Effects of Food Assistance and Nutrition Programs on Nutrition and Health: Volume 4, Executive Summary of the Literature Review, FANRR-19-4
School Lunch and Breakfast Cost Study II (PDF | 1.32)USDA. Food and Nutrition Service.
A study on the cost of serving school lunch and breakfast.
School Food Environment Policies in US Public SchoolsJournal of the American Academy of Pediatrics.
An exploration of how school food environments change from elementary school through high school and what policies allow these changes.
State of the States: 2008, A Profile of Food and Nutrition Programs Across the Nation (PDF | 2.1 MB)Food Research and Action Center.
The data in this report describe the extent of hunger and food insecurity and the use of nutrition programs for the United States as a whole and for each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia, giving a snapshot of how well or badly each state is doing in using available tools to meet the needs of hungry people and improve the health of low-income families.
Plate Waste Studies - Methods for Conducting StudiesNational Food Service Management Institute.
Manual discusses the most common methods of plate waste studies, which methods are appropriate for your needs, and provides suggestions for conducting plate waste studies.
School Meals Initiative Implementation StudiesUSDA. Food and Nutrition Service.
Study describes and evaluates overall implementation of the School Meals Initiative for Healthy Children, key operational characteristics of at the school district and State agency level, and training and technical assistance activities associated with the school meals programs.
Nutrition Information at Point of Selection Affects Food Chosen by High School StudentsSNA. The Journal of Child Nutrition & Management.
High school students made slightly better food choices when presented with the nutrition information of the foods, though no drastic differences were seen.
School lunch and snacking patterns among high school students: Associations with school food environment and policiesThe International Journal of Behavior Nutrition and Physical Activity.
Schools with open lunch have students that consume a greater number of snack foods and fast foods instead of nutritious meals.