[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 3 (Wednesday, January 5, 2000)]
[Notices]
[Pages 436-437]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-204]
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Notices
Federal Register
________________________________________________________________________
This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains documents other than rules
or proposed rules that are applicable to the public. Notices of hearings
and investigations, committee meetings, agency decisions and rulings,
delegations of authority, filing of petitions and applications and agency
statements of organization and functions are examples of documents
appearing in this section.
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Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 3 / Wednesday, January 5, 2000 /
Notices
[[Page 436]]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Food and Nutrition Service
Public Notice of Comment Period for Proposed Yields for Revision
of the ``Food Buying Guide for Child Nutrition Programs''
AGENCY: Food and Nutrition Service, USDA.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: This notice announces that beginning December 15, 1999 the
Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) will post proposed yields on the
Healthy School Meals Resource System at http://
schoolmeals.nal.usda.gov:8001. The yields are for both new foods to be
included in the next revision of the ``Food Buying Guide for Child
Nutrition Programs'' (FBG) and for currently listed foods reexamined
using the most current appropriate food testing technology. FNS is
posting this yield information so that interested members of the
public, including industry representatives, can review and comment on
the findings prior to finalizing the yields for the next revision of
the FBG.
DATES: Comments must be received on or before April 15, 1999 to be
assured of consideration.
ADDRESSES: Address comments on proposed yields or yield research on
specific items to Lori French, Chief, Nutrition Promotion and Training
Branch, Child Nutrition Division, Food and Nutrition Service, USDA,
3101 Park Center Drive, Room 1004, Alexandria, Virginia 22302.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Janice Fabina at (703) 305-2621.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The Food and Nutrition Service (FNS), USDA, administers various
child nutrition programs including the National School Lunch Program,
the School Breakfast Program, the Child and Adult Care Food Program,
and the Summer Food Service Program. Program guidance and training
materials prepared must be provided to food service personnel and
constantly updated in order to improve the quality of the food served
and to promote the efficient management of nutrition assistance
programs. An integral component of this guidance is laboratory-based
yield research on institutional packed foods that are used to prepare
meals in conformance with program regulations.
One of the basic program aids prepared by FNS is the ``Food Buying
Guide for Child Nutrition Programs,'' Program Aid No. 1331 (Food Buying
Guide). It is used extensively in several areas related to child
nutrition programs:
Food Service Personnel--The Food Buying Guide provides information
for planning and calculating the required quantities of food to be
purchased and used by school food authorities and other institutions
participating in child nutrition programs. It is the cornerstone upon
which meals are planned, prepared, and analyzed for meeting food-based
meal pattern requirements for each component of a federally
reimbursable meal. The Food Buying Guide defines the number of servings
(i.e., yield) per purchase unit for most foods used in these programs.
These yields are used in recipes to ensure that meal requirements for
child nutrition programs are being met. Precise data is essential. In
addition, it is an important tool to enable school food authorities
using a food-based menu planning system to comply with the Dietary
Guidelines for Americans as required by section 9(f)(1) of the National
School Lunch Act, 42 U.S.C. 1758(f)(1).
Child Nutrition (CN) Labeling--The Food Buying Guide is also used
in establishing a commercial product's contribution toward meal pattern
requirements in the CN label review process. Section 4(d) of the CN
labeling regulations found in Appendix C to 7 CFR parts 210, 220, 225,
and 226 states, ``Yields for determining the product's contribution
toward meal pattern requirements must be calculated using the Food
Buying Guide for Child Nutrition Programs (Program Aid Number 1331).''
Therefore, the Food Buying Guide is a valuable tool for members of
the food industry serving child nutrition programs. Another use of the
Food Buying Guide in the CN labeling program is in determining
component yields for new products containing foods not listed in the
Food Buying Guide. If ingredients are not contained in the Food Buying
Guide, they can be compared to similar ingredients in the Food Buying
Guide. If a close match can be found, a yield can be assigned to the
new product without having to do extensive studies on the product to
determine a yield.
Child Nutrition Database--Finally, the Food Buying Guide provides
an essential data set in the Child Nutrition Database. This database is
required by 7 CFR 210.10(i)(4) of the National School Lunch Program and
7 CFR 220.8(e)(4) o f the School Breakfast Program to be used in USDA-
approved software programs for school food authorities using nutrient
standard menu planning systems. The database has incorporated the Food
Buying Guide so that there is on-line access to yield data, i.e.,
information for ready-to-serve, ready-to-cook, cooked, or otherwise
prepared food that would be obtained from a specific market unit of
food as purchased. This food yield data provides the user with
information necessary for the ``Yield Factor Method'' of nutrient
analysis of school recipes and menu plans. This is critical for
accurate analysis and to enable schools to plan meals that comply with
the established nutrient standards for school meals.
The last laboratory research incorporated into the Food Buying
Guide was completed in May, 1980. The Food Buying Guide has since
received minor revision in 1984, and again in 1990 and 1995. Because
food technology and processing have changed so dramatically in the last
fifteen years, it is now imperative to update the current edition. USDA
contracted with the U.S. Army's Research, Development, and Engineering
Center's Armed Forces Recipe Team in Natick, Massachusetts to conduct
new research on the yield of approximately 400 new foods for inclusion
in the Food Buying Guide and to review the yield information of 200
foods currently found in the publication. Yield information was
gathered for basic ingredients only, not
[[Page 437]]
commercially processed products such as chicken and beef patties or
combination items such as lasagna, chili, or macaroni and cheese, etc.
Methodology
The yield information was gathered by using various types of
cooking and processing equipment. The equipment and cooking procedures
commonly used in school food service preparation were determined in a
study conducted by the National Food Service Management Institute in
March 1996: Issues Related to Equipment and the Dietary Guidelines for
Americans. Use of this study ensured that the resultant yields would be
consistent with school food service preparation methods. Careful
documentation records were kept by the contractor concerning the
equipment used and the preparation/processing methods employed in using
this equipment.
This laboratory-based yield research of institutional packed food
was conducted by the contractor using specified quantities of product.
Final data includes net weight and volume, drained solids weight and
volume, drained liquids weight and volume, and weight/volume ratios for
canned fruits and vegetables. Data for meat/poultry is percent yields
based on the state of the materials (frozen, thawed, trimmed, cooked,
sliced), with skin, gristle, and bone removed. Factors for fresh fruits
and vegetables addresses the end-stage of the food (peeled, pared,
husked, hulled, cored), as well as weight/volume ratios for diced,
cubed, sliced, and chopped; the size of the cut will be specified.
Interested parties may obtain the complete, detailed methodology
for any of the food categories (meat/meat alternates, vegetables and
fruits, grains/breads, milk/dairy products and other foods) upon
written request to FNS at the address in the ADDRESSES section of this
notice.
Review of Proposed Yields
The Food and Nutrition Service welcomes input from industry and
other interested members of the public in the revision of the Food
Buying Guide. Modifications to the Food Buying Guide could determine
how a company markets their product, develops new products, or it could
even cause processing procedures or formulations to change. Because the
resultant yield data will have implications for industry in future
marketing and new product development, FNS believes it is imperative
that interested persons from appropriate industries review the
findings. FNS has posted the new yield information on the Healthy
School Meals Resource System's web site at http://
schoolmeals.nal.usda.gov:8001. Interested parties should review the web
site to check for the complete set of new information. FNS encourages
all interested parties, especially affected industry representatives,
to submit written comments indicating concerns about the proposed
yields. Any comments disagreeing with the yield findings should include
supporting data. Written comments should be sent to FNS at the address
in the ADDRESSES section of this notice by April 15, 1999. FNS will
consider all timely comments prior to publishing the revised Food
Buying Guide.
Yield Research on Specific Items
Interested parties may also submit requests for yield research on
specific food items by sending such requests, in writing, to the
address listed in the ADDRESSES section of this notice.
Food Buying Guide Revision
Note that the yield information to be published on the web site
will not be incorporated into the Child Nutrition Database nor may it
be relied upon for CN Labeling or meal planning purposes until the
final Food Buying Guide revisions are made. The Food and Nutrition
Service does not expect to finalize the yield data until late spring
2000. The final Food Buying Guide is expected to be printed and
distributed in late fall 2000. It will be distributed in printed copy
to all school food authorities and other institutions participating in
the child nutrition programs. Printed copies will be made available for
sale. It will also be made available on the Internet.
Authority: The authority citation for 7 CFR part 210 continues
to read as follows: 42 U.S.C. 1751-1760, 1779.
Dated: December 23, 1999.
Samuel Chambers, Jr.
Administrator, Food and Nutrition Service.
[FR Doc. 00-204 Filed 1-4-00; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-30-U
