Strategic Focus: Preventing Youth Obesity
Healthy Foods for Healthy Students (HB 2650):
2008 School Nutrition Standards
Background
Due to the alarming increase in childhood obesity rates, a group of committed public health advocates, legislators, school officials, parents and other partners expressed interest in finding a way begin curbing the problem. Since kids spend so much of their time in school, it made sense to pursue a policy initiative to change the school environment to make “the healthy choice the easy choice.” Bills to set nutrition standards on competitive foods, e.g. foods sold outside the National School Meals Program, were introduced to the Oregon Legislature in 2003 and 2005 but did not pass. The Oregon Nutrition Policy Alliance, led by Community Health Partnership: Oregon’s Public Health Institute (CHP) and in partnership with the Oregon Nurses Association, the American Diabetes Association and Stand for Children, launched a successful campaign in 2007 to pass House Bill 2650: Healthy Schools for Healthy Students.
In June 2007 Governor Ted Kulongoski signed HB 2650 into law. The new law sets nutrition standards for all foods and beverages sold outside the National School Meals Program in ALL school locations during regular and extended day. It sets age appropriate portion sizes and calorie, fat and sugar limits for snacks and beverages. The new law goes into effect July 1, 2008; however, “house made” (made from scratch) a la carte items will not have to meet nutrition criteria until July 1, 2009.
Information and Tools for Implementing HB 2650
Community Health Partnership: Oregon’s Public Health Institute (CHP) has dedicated this section of its website to providing more information about the law. CHP is developing several tools that can be used to determine whether a particular snack or beverage meets the new standards for Oregon’s public elementary, middle and high schools. Please see below the menu below to see the documents and tools that are currently available.
General overview of HB 2650 pdf file
To view the law in its entirety pdf file
What HB 2650 does large pdf file
How we got to HB 2650 pdf file
Frequently asked questions about HB2650 pdf file
More tools for HB 2650 coming soon
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