Last month, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) initiated its new Smart Snacks in School nutrition standards, which affect the sale of foods and beverages that are not part of federally supported meals programs. This includes beverages sold in vending machines, a la carte lines and school stores during the school
day. Designed to help make the healthy choice an easy choice for students, the new rules primarily impact beverages in terms of portion size and calorie count and are set up according to age group.