What's Shaking?

June is National Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Month! To celebrate, we’re showcasing the Detroit Public Schools Community District (DPSCD), and their amazing work getting students engaged and excited about fresh fruits and vegetables.

It’s that time of year – books, backpacks and a BBQ! That’s right - Minneapolis Public Schools (MPS) is preparing for its annual Farm to School Community BBQ, a much anticipated back-to-school event that kicks off the school year. The following guest blog features inspiring initiatives MPS has...

June is National Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Month! To celebrate this, we’re showcasing the important work of California Thursdays, a collaboration between the Center for Ecoliteracy and a network of public school districts to serve healthy, freshly prepared school meals made from California-grown...

This post is part of the Science Tuesday feature series on the USDA blog. Check back each week as we showcase stories and news from USDA’s rich science and research portfolio. March is National Nutrition Month, an annual observance that encourages Americans to adopt a healthy eating pattern that...

Bridgette Matthews is a Lead Mentor for USDA’s Team Up for Nutrition Success Initiative, which provides school food authorities with tailored technical assistance and training to successfully implement the school meal patterns. Here, Bridgette discusses the importance of training for school...

What’s shaking in USDA’s school meals programs? Delicious and nutritious food, that’s what! Healthy food does not have to be bland or boring. There’s more to creating a tasty meal than just dousing food in dressing or layering on salty sauces. It’s easy to make your dish pop without adding excess...

Reducing sodium in school meals is an important part of a broader effort to scale back sodium intake for all Americans. To that end, our nation’s school nutrition professionals are actively working to lower the sodium content in our children’s meals during the school day. Many schools have already...

Sodium, the major nutrient found in salt, is essential to maintain blood volume, regulate water balance in cells, and aid nerve function. According to the American Heart Association, however, too much sodium can lead to high blood pressure, increasing the risk of cardiovascular disease, congestive...