DOE policy is aligned with the ideas of the National School Lunch Program (NSLP), which means changes must be made to both policies to better reflect 2024 nutritional studies. This roughly means that policies will need to increase the amount of fruits and vegetables while also reducing sodium, added sugars, and saturated-fats.

It would also be good if students and parents in New York City could taste the plant-powered menu items and approve them before adding them to the menu. Generally, parents and students are the ones who consume school meals in New York City, so a participatory approach encourages enthusiasm and further participation from demographics who will actually be eating the proposed meals.

Since budget is not a constraint in this hypothetical instance, the DOE would most likely have to increase spending to meet these criteria because healthier food options are usually more expensive. Further alignment with recent nutritional values will help ensure consistent food quality.

As stated by the FASEB Journal source from our Literature Review, a major issue with developing food policy is the lack of experienced staffers available to meet food quality standards. There are not enough employees to consistently and masterfully follow USDA standards and practice healthy cooking techniques up to par.

We propose regular, city-mandated workshops and training for cafeteria workers. These would have to be led by experts in respective fields such as chefs or nutritionists. A cheaper but effective alternative would to also provide an online support system that the cafeteria staff can use to access professional chefs for assistance or troubleshooting during meal preparation.

Foods with limited nutritional value are frequently sold through bake sales, fundraisers, and vending machines. Additionally, these instances may be more or less common in certain schools due to budget differences. Although these items are enjoyed by students, results from our survey determined that it was common for students to become over-reliant on these products, which goes against nutritional policy values.

We propose a limitation on certain foods that are stocked in vending machines. As a replacement, vending machines should be stocked with healthier food options that still provide a sense of enjoyment to students. Staff can also be assigned to monitor vending machine sales and limit student overuse. By limiting the consumption of unhealthy items, nutritional values can be met more frequently in different school environments.

Artificial sweeteners have been linked to a risk of contracting several health issues, such as heart disease, changes to your metabolism, and changes to your sense of taste. The removal of artificial sweeteners from common meals may be tricky, but it is important to protecting student health and wellbeing.

Our proposal relates closely to supply management and auditing. The DOE can take time to frequently audit meal ingredients to make sure they do not contain harmful sweeteners, and work with suppliers to make sure ingredients meet nutritional standards. Providing education on the downsides for artificial sweeteners to students and parents can also help discourage their consumption and inclusion in daily meal plans.

It is the education system’s responsibility to not only provide healthy meals for all students but to also educate them about healthy eating habits and nutrition principles which they can further apply outside of the school environment.

We propose an incorporation of nutrition into the school curriculum since it is also up to the students to change nutritional habits and make healthier choices. For example, a healthier reinstatement of a home economics class can help students learn to prepare healthy meals and take the recipes home to their families. Encouraging positive, healthy, students action can also help drive further policy changes.