Child Nutrition Update - October 2020
October is ....
Sunday, Oct 4 is Cinnamon Roll Day. No one will care if you celebrate a day later though. Traditional breakfast fare, North Dakota is famous for pairing the sweet grain with a bowl of chili at lunch as well. Remember cinnamon rolls are not creditable in the At Risk snack or supper programs, but they are in the Summer food service program and the regular school meal programs.
October 5-9 th is the “Apple Crunch” challenge with October 7 th as the official ‘Crunch Off Day”. This year, the challenge is going beyond the apple to include anything that crunches – carrots, cucumbers. Link to Crunch Off Registration: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/535866Q   ND is judged on how many people register per capita AND anyone can register. Last year, a chiropractic office and the Target corporation registered! Pass it around.

National School Lunch week: October 12th - 16th SNA’s theme is “Now Playing: National School Lunch Week” with a theatre design. With COVID physical distancing it will be tough to do the traditional invitation for parents to eat with their children this week. But if you are still serving in the cafeteria, the kids always get a kick out of the Principal, Phy Ed teacher or any other favorite staff member who is not the “Lunch Lady”, wearing an apron and hair net serving them. Maybe pair the apron with cool sunglasses in a celebrity themed-day. Other celebrities for the elementary crowd are the high school football quarterback, the student body president, a church pastor or an active-in-the-community farmer.

October is Farm to School Month: Kids Win, Farmers Win, Communities Win!
Farm to School Month, an annual 31-day campaign to recognize, appreciate and celebrate the connections happening across the country between kids, families and their community food systems. National Farm to School Month was designated by Congress in 2010, making this year’s campaign the 10th anniversary of National Farm to School Month celebrations.

  • Farm to School Resources:
  • ND State Ag Dept: includes Crunch Off next week!
  • Curriculums at:
  • USDA’s Farm to School Planning Kit:

Pumpkin month: Pumpkins and all the members of the squash family are being harvested now and marketing features pumpkin spice in just about any food. Make a batch of “pumpkin spice” and add it to vanilla yogurt, muffins and pancake batter or butter for the yummy fall taste. To make a small batch, blend together 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon, 1 3/4 teaspoons ground ginger, 1 teaspoon nutmeg, 1 teaspoon all spice. This will yield about 2 tablespoons of seasoning.

Halloween: Ghoulish food day at the end of the month. We have seen some creative menus featuring things like Edible ghosts (individually wrapped cheese sticks with faces inked on the package?), Witch fingers dipped in dragon blood (breadsticks in marinara?), and Lizard eyes (grapes?). We would love to hear about your menu too.
Welcome, Amy Nelson
NDDPI Child Nutrition and Food Distribution has a new Child Nutrition specialist! Amy Nelson will be working with the School Nutrition programs, Child and Adult Care food programs and the Summer food service program. She has a degree in Dietetics from NDSU. She comes to us after running the foodservice in a long term care facility so she is getting a new perspective on food for young people.
She will be working on the east side of the state from the Mayville office. Contact her at amylnelson@nd.gov or 701-451-7465.
New Kitchen Manager Training

Coming October 22nd, another opportunity to navigate the maze that is USDA school meal requirements for those who have recently assumed the duties of school kitchen manager and/or foodservice director. Most schools are serving meals under the Summer Food service program however at some time, possibly as early as January 1st, we will return to the National School Lunch program and School Breakfast programs so new kitchen managers need to know the differences. We will hold the class in person at the North Dakota State Capitol building in Bismarck but also over the Microsoft Teams platform for those who don’t want to travel or chance the possibility of some type of infection. Register for this class (either in-person or through Teams) on EventBrite:

Hiring a new “Food Services Director” in your school?
This is what you need to know.
As of July of 2015, USDA put hiring standards in place for the position of ‘Food service Director’ (FSD) in every school. Requirements for large school FSD’s include a college degree and some background in institutional food service. Smaller school districts, like the majority of those in North Dakota still must look for candidates with this education and experience but USDA is aware that rural areas may fall short of finding this ideal applicant. They have allowed for a waiver of education and/or experience if there is someone interested in the position at a school of less than 2,500 students.  The HIRING WAIVER must be submitted to and approved by NDDPI Child Nutrition. 
Other requirements for foodservice directors:
  • Food safety and sanitation certification within the last 5 years or the first 6 months of hire. Send the Child Nutrition office a copy for the certificate.
  • The initial sanitation certification cannot be included in the annual 12 hours of professional development.
Professional Development Opportunity if you have a full freezer…..
USDA Foods hosted a couple of webinars that are now recorded for your convenient viewing pleasure. You may have been alerted to them elsewhere, but remember to log your training time! If you did not view them, they are worth your time - USDA Foods in Schools Webinar Recordings
On July 30, FNS hosted a webinar for State Distributing Agencies who manage USDA Foods in Schools programs. 
It's a New School Year: What's Happening with USDA Foods in Schools webinar provided guidance on the USDA Department of Defense (DoD) Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program and National Processing Program. We covered updates on allocating funds and adding new sites to USDA DoD Fresh, monitoring USDA Foods inventories, and details on SY 2020-2021 entitlement calculations, including the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) Opt-In Waiver for School Year 2020- 2021 National School Lunch Program USDA Foods Entitlement Calculations.
On September 3, FNS hosted a USDA Foods in Schools webinar entitled COVID-19 Guidance for Managing USDA Foods Inventories in SY 2020-2021.  This webinar provided guidance on flexibilities available to help manage USDA Foods in Schools during these unprecedented times due to COVID-19. Topics included information on USDA Foods direct delivered products, USDA Department of Defense (DoD) Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program, and the National Processing Program. We covered some actions you can take to assist with utilization of USDA Foods inventories and minimize food loss. This webinar was intended for State Distributing Agency and FNS Regional Office staff who manage USDA Foods in Schools programs however this webinar may help school food service directors understand how the whole USDA Foods structure works.
Whole Grains Webinars
September was our Whole Grains month but the Oldways Whole Grains Council is continuing their efforts for educating with a live webinar on “Understanding Whole Grain Processing and Impacts on Nutrition” Mark your calendar on Thursday, November 19th at 2 p.m. CST/1 p.m. MST to watch this webinar featuring several professors of nutrition who will give practical tips on meeting dietary recommendations for whole grains. Register at: https://wholegrainscouncil.org/get-involved/webinars
While you are there, check out some of the other trainings for your professional development needs.
Tips on Wearing your Mask
The CDC has recently updated their guidance on wearing a mask including how to put it on, wear it and the proper way to take it off. To find this updated information go to: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/about-face-coverings.html

Many people started wearing a mask shortly after the public emergency was announced but have not been as religious in wearing one lately because of little aggravations. The CDC has also tried to address these issues.

Confusion on the best type of mask to wear; Disposable vs washable masks: Disposables are convenient but can become costly as they need to be changed almost as often as gloves. The CDC website has directions for sewing a reusable mask along with a ‘no-sew’ mask made from a t-shirt. The CDC nixes some of the masks that are currently for sale including those made from clear vinyl. These see-through masks allow the wearer’s smile to be seen but they are hard to breathe in and will cause the wearer to discard the mask sooner than wearing one that is made of breathable fabric.

Another reason that some refuse to wear a mask is the problem of glasses fogging up. The CDC states that you should choose a mask that fits snuggly over your nose or find one with a bendable nose wire that can be bent to fit the bridge of the nose to limit fogging of glasses. There are also anti-fogging sprays that can be applied to the glasses to mitigate the fog. Finally, for an even snugger fit, apply a bandage or piece of medical tape to the nose under the glasses to fill up any gaps.

For those that have stopped wearing masks because the ear loops cause soreness on the back of the ear, try using a tie mask or add a button to a head band at locations that will be above both ears. Then use the buttons rather than your ears to hook the mask ear loops on.

Another frustration is not being able to communicate clearly through a mask so you start speaking louder and your voice gets tired. The North Dakota dialect tends to be faster than in other parts of the United States. It is better to focus on slowing down your speech pattern and enunciate each word rather than speaking louder for others to understand what you are saying.

Finally, social media has coined the phrase ‘mask acne’ for breakouts on the cheeks and nose where the masks touch the face. A quick check of WebMD says that acne is caused from ‘clogged pores’. Therefore, if you are having a problem with mask acne, make sure your face is clean before putting on a mask.   The CDC also notes “Be sure to wash your hands before putting on a mask”. And at least one state’s health department is recommending that a mask can be placed in a paper bag for 3-4 day before re-wearing again instead of laundering in between uses. The CDC only mentions washing masks with soap and water in the fight against COVID. This will help with the mask acne as well.

The CDC has some great infographics that can be printed off to remind staff about wearing masks:
HAPPY FALL!
NDDPI Child Nutrition and Food Distribution
Main Office:
600 E. Boulevard Ave, Dept 201
Bismarck, ND 58505  
PHONE: 701-328-2294 or 888-338-3663
FAX: 701-328-9566


Mayville Office:
14 Main St E, Mayville, ND 58257
PHONE: 701-877-8901 or 888-788-8901

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