Position of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics: Child and Adolescent Federally Funded Nutrition Assistance Programs.

It is the position of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics that children and adolescents should have access to safe and healthy foods that promote physical, cognitive, and social growth and development. Federally funded nutrition assistance programs, such as food assistance, meal service, and nutrition education, play a vital role in ensuring that children and adolescents have access to the foods they need and in improving the overall nutrition and health environments of communities. Federally funded nutrition assistance programs help to ensure that children and adolescents receive safe, healthy foods that provide adequate energy and nutrients to meet their growth and development needs.

Position of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics: food and water safety.

It is the position of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics that all people should have access to a safe food and water supply. The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics supports science-based food and water regulations and recommendations that are applied consistently across all foods and water regulated by all agencies and incorporate traceability and recall to limit food- and waterborne outbreaks. Registered dietitian nutritionists and dietetic technicians, registered, are encouraged to participate in policy decisions, program development, and implementation of a food safety culture.

Emergency preparedness needs assessment of centralized school foodservice and warehousing operations.

Managers of onsite retail foodservice operations, particularly those in centralized school foodservice operations, are called on to provide meals during emergencies, yet there is a paucity of research on their readiness to handle emergencies. Qualitative research and a cross-sectional survey design were used to conduct a needs assessment for emergency preparedness (emergency readiness, food recalls, and food defense) in centralized school foodservice operations, including warehousing. An open-ended written questionnaire was mailed to eight foodservice directors, and responses were used to develop a written questionnaire that was mailed to school foodservice directors in 200 districts identified as having centralized food production and warehousing.