Formulated Grain Fruit Products

This Management Bulletin (MB) notifies School Breakfast Program (SBP) sponsors that beginning July 1, 2012, Formulated Grain Fruit (FGF) products can no longer satisfy both the grain and fruit components.

Background

The final rule, “Nutrition Standards for the National School Lunch and School Breakfast Programs,” removes Section I. Formulated Grain-Fruit Products from Title 7, Code of Federal Regulations (7 CFR), Part 220, Appendix A – Alternate Foods for Meals. FGF products were formulated to satisfy both the bread and fruit requirements through fortification, at a time when the adequacy of cooking and serving facilities were of concern for students participating in the SBP.

Appendix A to 7 CFR Part 220 is available as an attachment to U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Policy Memo SP 26-2012, which can be found on the USDA Food and Nutrition Service Formulated Grain Fruit Products web page at https://www.fns.usda.gov/cn/formulated-grain-fruit-products.

Previously approved FGF products met one bread/bread alternate and the fruit/vegetable requirement in the breakfast meal pattern. All FGF products had the following statement on the label:

“This product conforms to USDA Child Nutrition Programs specification. For breakfast, it meets the requirements for fruit/vegetable/juice and one bread/bread alternate.”

Guidance on FGF Products

The following are updated requirements for using FGF products:

• The product must contain the USDA approved statement on the label.
  
  
• The product can no longer contribute toward the fruit requirement.
  
  
• The product may be used to contribute toward the grain/bread requirement, as specified in Exhibit A of the Food Buying Guide (FBG) for Child Nutrition Programs (page 3–15,16 of the FBG).

Please be aware that FGF products do not include energy bars, granola bars, cereal bars, breakfast bars, fortified cereals, or cereals with fruit.

For additional information on the new meal pattern grain requirements, please see USDA-SNP-30-2012 entitled Grain Requirements for the National School Lunch and School Breakfast Programs at https://www.fns.usda.gov/cn/grain-requirements-national-school-lunch-program-and-school-breakfast-program.

Contact Information

If you have questions regarding this MB, please contact Mia Bertacchi, Child Nutrition Assistant (CNA), Northern School Nutrition Programs Unit (SNPU), by phone at 916-445-1261 or by e-mail at mbertacchi@cde.ca.gov, or Lori Porter, CNC, Southern SNPU, by phone at 916-322-1454 or by e-mail at lporter@cde.ca.gov.