National School Lunch Program: USDA Could Enhance Assistance to States and Schools in Providing Seafood to Students
Fast Facts
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's National School Lunch Program provides healthy meals to millions of kids from low-income households. Dietary guidelines say school age kids should eat 4-10 oz. of seafood weekly. But seafood made up just 1-2% of all animal proteins that USDA purchased for the program (about 3 oz. per student per year) in FYs 2014-19.
Several factors—allergy concerns, student preferences, and cost—affected states' and school food authorities' efforts to offer seafood. USDA could support them by providing nutrition education, allergen and food safety training, and recipes.
We made recommendations to help address this issue.
Highlights
What GAO Found
From states' and school food authorities' (SFAs) orders, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) purchased a limited quantity of seafood compared to other animal proteins (beef, eggs, pork, and poultry) for the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) for fiscal years 2014 through 2019. USDA's seafood purchases were between 1 and 2 percent of all animal proteins purchased annually for the program. Nationally, the average quantity of USDA-purchased seafood per student through the NSLP over this period was about 3 ounces per year. According to the 2020–2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA), school-age children should consume between 4 and 10 ounces of seafood per week.
Average Quantity of Seafood That USDA Purchased per Student Participating in the National School Lunch Program by State per Fiscal Year, 2014 through 2019
aKansas receives cash payments in lieu of USDA-purchased foods. Because Kansas does not order USDA-purchased food, Kansas is not represented in the seafood data reported for this program.
Officials from 10 selected states and SFAs, which operate the NSLP in schools, told GAO that several factors, such as student preference, concerns about allergens, and cost, affected their efforts to provide seafood to students. However, officials from six of 10 SFAs expressed an interest in serving more seafood, including some citing it as a healthy option. USDA officials said that at least some of the factors could be addressed with nutrition education.
USDA offers limited seafood-related assistance to states and SFAs. USDA has not developed a plan to enhance its assistance that could draw on existing efforts, such as webinars or USDA's previous efforts, including lessons learned from two USDA pilot projects. Without a plan, USDA may be missing an opportunity to enhance its seafood-related assistance.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) provides some seafood-related assistance to USDA, but USDA has not fully leveraged its relationship with NOAA. NOAA officials told GAO that it collects and maintains what is likely the most complete list of seafood vendors in the United States, but it does not share this list with USDA. Without obtaining and sharing such information, USDA may miss an opportunity to further assist states and SFAs in providing seafood to students.
Why GAO Did This Study
USDA helps millions of children from low-income households access healthy meals by purchasing food, including seafood, for the NSLP. USDA-purchased foods represent about 15 to 20 percent of the food served in the NSLP. According to the DGA, programs, such as the NSLP, can play an essential role in providing access to healthy meals. This can help reduce the health risks children may face from consuming a poor diet. Seafood offers particular health benefits, including omega-3 fatty acids, which can aid in the prevention of heart disease.
GAO was asked to review USDA's purchases of seafood for the NSLP. This report discusses (1) USDA's purchases of seafood for the NSLP, (2) factors affecting selected states' and SFAs' efforts to provide seafood to students, and (3) USDA's efforts to help address these factors.
GAO analyzed data from USDA on food purchases, including seafood, from fiscal years 2014 through 2019; interviewed state and SFA officials from a non-generalizable sample of 10 major domestic seafood-producing states with a range of NSLP funding levels; and interviewed USDA officials. GAO excluded data for fiscal years 2020 and 2021 because of the impact of COVID-19 on NSLP participation.
Recommendations
GAO is making three recommendations, including that USDA develop a plan to enhance its assistance in providing seafood to students, and for USDA and NOAA to collaborate and share NOAA's vendor information. USDA and NOAA agreed with our recommendations.
Recommendations for Executive Action
| Agency Affected | Recommendation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Department of Agriculture | The Secretary of Agriculture should develop a plan to enhance its assistance to states and school food authorities in providing seafood to students through the National School Lunch Program. Actions described in such a plan could build upon information that GAO collected regarding factors that selected states and school food authorities said have affected their efforts to provide more seafood to students through the program. The plan could also incorporate USDA's experience and lessons learned from previous efforts aimed at enhancing the variety and availability of other food products, such as dairy products and unprocessed fruits and vegetables. (Recommendation 1) |
USDA agreed with our recommendation to develop a plan to enhance its assistance to states and school food authorities in providing seafood to students through the National School Lunch Program. Actions described in such a plan could build upon information that GAO collected regarding factors that selected states and school food authorities (SFAs) said have affected their efforts to provide more seafood to students through the program. USDA developed a plan with activities it carried out in 2023 that included updating some training and a food buying guide. The plan, however, does not discuss if and how the agency will the use the information GAO collected regarding factors that selected states and SFAs said affected their efforts to provide more seafood, nor does the plan identify agency activities beyond 2023, which would signal a continuing effort. In addition, the plan does not discuss the use of the domestic seafood vendors list that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) will provide to USDA. Information on NOAA's domestic seafood vendor list would also allow states and SFA officials to identify local vendors on their own, which would also enable them to more easily purchase seafood directly. As of September 2024, we will continue to monitor USDA efforts to implement this recommendation.
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| National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration | The Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration should work with the Secretary of Agriculture to develop a collaborative mechanism, such as a memorandum of understanding that establishes the sharing of NOAA's list of domestic seafood vendors with USDA. (Recommendation 2) |
NOAA and USDA agreed that a memorandum of understanding was not required for NOAA to share its list domestic seafood vendors with USDA. NOAA agreed that it would provide this list to USDA annually and provided a copy of the list in June 2023.
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| Department of Agriculture | The Secretary of Agriculture should work with the Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to develop a collaborative mechanism, such as a memorandum of understanding that establishes the sharing of NOAA's list of domestic seafood vendors with USDA. (Recommendation 3) |
USDA and NOAA agreed that a memorandum of understanding was not required for NOAA to share its list domestic seafood vendors with USDA. NOAA agreed that it would provide this list to USDA annually and provided a copy of the list in June 2023.
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