With the USDA Final Rule for Child Nutrition Standards announced earlier this year, it’s the right time to start discussing how manufacturer partners can work together to help our schools meet new regulations. Singularly, we cannot claim to meet a particular standard as they are based on a combined evaluation of all meal components (5) and a weekly average.

Whether it’s reducing added sugar or lowering sodium, the time is now to think about how each of our products work together in that “math equation” with other compliant products. With all of us working together to help simplify meal solutions for our school partners, we can help communicate that we got this! Going that extra mile and working together was the first step in the early days of Smart Snacks—I remember manufacturers would utilize tomato products with the “entrée” to reduce overall saturated fat...