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Developing healthy eating habits in childhood may support future healthy food choices. With most children spending some time outside of the home, child care facilities have the opportunity to positively influence children's eating habits. The purpose of this paper is to review recent research regarding foods served in child care settings and determine the nutritional quality of foods served. The Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) is a government program that supports child and adult day care facilities by providing reimbursement for adhering to specific meal and snack nutrition guidelines. Our review found that children in facilities participating in the CACFP are served more nutritious meals than non-CACFP facilities because of the requirement to serve nutrient-dense foods. The literature indicates a need for additional training and education on menu creation and actually serving menued foods, as well as strategies to help children increase their vegetable consumption.

Peer-reviewed research on the effectiveness of salad bars for increasing fruit and vegetable (F/V) intake is limited. This commentary discusses current evidence regarding the effectiveness of salad bars in increasing F/V selection and consumption, thereby reducing food waste. Key findings from this review of the research are that salad bars in schools: (1) are increasing in prevalence; (2) are more prevalent in schools participating in assistance and resource programs; (3) increase selection of F/V; and (4) have an inconclusive effect on F/V consumption and waste. To maximize potential for salad bars in schools to positively influence F/V consumption, additional strategies have been recommended. These strategies include encouragement for F/V intake via marketing, education, signage, and family/peer support. The use of salad bars as a strategy to improve F/V selection and consumption should be continuously evaluated to determine efficacy and identify potential improvements.

Over 50 million Americans have a food allergy to one or more foods (Berdanier, 2017). Approximately 1 in 25 school-aged children are diagnosed with food allergies (Sicherer, Mahr, & The Section on Allergy and Immunology, 2010), while 25% of children may not experience a reaction until later in life (Leo & Clark, 2017). A food sensitivity or intolerance, on the other hand, can be defined as any undesired reaction to a food or food group (Berdanier, 2017). As of now, research regarding school nutrition professionals' knowledge of food sensitivities, food intolerances, and food trends that may affect students' food preferences is not available. Yet, food trends show that some consumers are demanding specialized diets including milk/dairy alternatives, meat alternatives, as well as foods that align with Whole30, and low-FODMAP diets (Brissette, 2018). Because of this demand, there is a need for training school nutrition personnel about food sensitivities as well as new food trends, in addition to food allergy training.

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES School nutrition (SN) assistants/technicians are vital to the operation of successful school nutrition programs. The objective of this study was to update the 2006 Competencies, Knowledge, and Skills (CKS) needed by effective SN assistants/technicians. Changes in SN programs since 2006, including the implementation of Professional Standards for School Nutrition professionals, necessitated the research process and updates to this essential piece of information used by SN professionals. METHODS Research was conducted in three phases with a diverse group of SN directors and supervisors (n= 41) from all seven United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service regions as follows: Phase I included a literature review, four case study site visits, collection and review of job descriptions, and an expert work group of SN directors (via email) whose members identified functional areas for SN assistants/technicians. Phase II included a face-to-face, expert work group tasked with developing CKS statements for the identified functional areas. Phase III included a review panel who evaluated a CKS draft resource (via email), a face-to-face expert work group who identified content for instructing users on how to best utilize the CKS resource, and a review panel who evaluated a nationwide, web-based survey for training needs. RESULTS The expert work group recommended six functional areas: Equipment Care & Use, Food Production, Food Safety & Sanitation, Personal Characteristics, USDA Meal Program Requirements, and Workplace & Employee Safety. The expert work group reached a consensus to include 15 competencies and 36 knowledge and skill statements within the functional areas. APPLICATION TO CHILD NUTRITION PROFESSIONALS The updated CKS resource developed from this project is available on the Institute of Child Nutrition (ICN) website and is useful to SN directors and managers in interviewing, training, mentoring, and evaluating SN assistants/technicians. The customizable tools within the updated CKS resource include a job description template, job interview template, individual mentoring plan form for use by SN managers, and competencybased performance appraisal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]