Identifying Grains and Whole Grain-Rich Foods In the USDA Meal Pattern

Implementation Schedule The requirements to offer whole grain-rich products will be phased in over the next two school years School Year (SY) Implemented LunchBreakfast SY half of the grains offered during the week must meet the whole grain-rich criteria SY half of the grains offered during the week must meet the whole grain-rich criteria SY all grains must meet the whole grain-rich criteria

What is Whole Grain-Rich? Foods that Contain: a)100 percent whole grain OR a)A blend of whole grain flour and enriched flour At least 50-percent of the grain must be whole grain.

Creditable Grains Whole grain-rich products must contain at least 50 percent whole grains AND the remaining grain, if any, must be enriched. For SY , products may contain non-creditable grain, but SFAs must credit only the whole grain or enriched portion –e.g., pasta that is 50% whole grain and 50% un- enriched semolina –SFA must serve 1 cup of pasta and only credit ½ cup toward grain component, unless manufacturer data indicates otherwise

Breakfast Cereal A ready-to-eat (RTE) breakfast cereal must list a whole grain as the primary ingredient and the RTE cereal must be fortified. 100% whole grain cereals do not need to be fortified.

Whole Grains: Examples Whole Wheat Flour Instant Oatmeal White Whole Wheat Flour Brown Rice Graham Flour Whole Grain Barley Bulgur (Cracked Wheat) Rolled Oats Popcorn Crushed Wheat Buckwheat Groats Whole Corn Rye berries Quinoa Amaranth Grain that contains the word whole in front of it!

Non-Creditable Grains: Examples Bran Germ Bromated Flour Corn Grits Degerminated Cornmeal Durum Flour Farina White Flour Semolina Flour Wheat Flour Oat Fiber Corn Fiber Wheat Starch Corn Starch Modified Food Starch

Whole Grain-Rich Criteria Element #1: A serving of the food item must meet portion size requirements for the grains/breads component as defined in FNS guidance

Whole Grain-Rich Criteria Element #2: The food must meet at least one of the following: a.The whole grains per serving (based on minimum serving sizes specified for grains/breads in FNS guidance) must be 8 grams or more for Groups A-G on Exhibit A. b.Includes the following FDA-approved claim: Diets rich in whole grain foods and other plant foods and low in total fat, saturated fat and cholesterol may reduce the risk of heart disease and some cancers. c.Product ingredient lists whole grain first

Whole Grain-Rich Criteria Food TypeRequirementExceptions to the whole grain being listed first Non-Mixed Dishes Ex: breads, cereals Whole grains must be listed as first ingredient a)Water listed first b)When the product contains multiple whole grain ingredients, the combined whole grains are the primary ingredient by weight Mixed Dishes Ex: pizza, corn dogs Whole grain must be first grain ingredient in the list of grains For foods prepared by the school food service, the recipe is used as the basis for a calculation to determine whether the total weight of whole-grain ingredients exceed the total weight of non whole-grain ingredients. enriched wheat flour (40% of grain) whole wheat (30% of grain) whole oats (30% of grain) % whole grain Turkey, water, soy protein, whole wheat flour, sugar, enriched cornmeal, soybean oil, enriched wheat flour, dried eggs, nonfat dry milk.

Flour Blends When flour blends are listed in the ingredient list and grouped together with parentheses, you need to know either: that the whole grain content is at least 8.0 grams per oz eq OR that the weight of the whole grain is greater than the first ingredient listed after the flour blend Example ingredient list: flour blend (whole wheat flour, enriched flour), sugar, cinnamon, canola oil.

Corn Masa Dough Corn products traditionally manufactured with corn masa dough where corn is treated with lime (calcium hydroxide), such as tortilla chips, taco shells, and tamales These corn products may be used in meeting the whole grain-rich criteria provided that the manufacturer meets the requirements for inclusion of the FDA whole grain health claim and includes the claim on the product package. Enrichment of corn masa (corn treated with lime) is not required for School Meal Programs when the finished corn product bears the FDA whole grain health claim.

In the Future… The good news is…. The CN Labeling program is being updated to report the whole grain-rich contributions to the grains component. On CN Label oz eq grains = meets whole grain-rich criteria bread or bread alternate = product meets previous program requirements for breads

Q&A Will all grains served on the serving line have to be whole grain-rich or only those which are counted toward the reimbursable meal? During the first two years of implementation at least half of the grains offered through the reimbursable meal must be whole grain-rich and after that all grains offered as part of the reimbursable meal must be whole grain-rich. Other grains served as a la carte items do not need to comply with the whole grain-rich requirement for the reimbursable school meals.

Q&A Can schools use the Whole Grain Stamp (from the Whole Grain Council) to determine if a product meets the whole grain-rich criterion? The Whole Grain Stamp is good information to suggest the product contains the proper amount of whole grains, but the content of the whole grain must still be matched against the serving size requirement in the school meal patterns. Products that display the Whole Grain Stamp contain at least 8 grams of whole grain, but they may also contain some un-enriched refined flour which does not meet the grains criteria for Child Nutrition Programs.

Smart Discussion

12 +3 > 12 = total whole grains are heaviest ingredient

For additional information on Idaho Smart School Meals contact: Child Nutrition Programs at or the NSLP team "This institution is an equal opportunity provider."