1. A la Carte Foods: Best Practices
Natalie Bryslan, BS

2. Overview Where do I start? What are competitive foods?
What are the rules and regulations that I need to follow?
What types of food items should I be selling?
What are the benefits of selling a la carte food items?
How should I be pricing my a la carte food items?
Resources

3. Where to start
Check to see what your district’s wellness policy allows when it comes to a la carte and competitive foods
Determine what items would sell well among your student population
Make sure the items you are selling meet state and federal guidelines
Focus on healthier food options
Pricing your a la carte items

4. What are completive foods?
According to the Colorado Competitive Food Service Policy (2202-R ) competitive food service is any food or beverage sold to students that is separate from the district’s nonprofit, federally reimbursed food service program, and is provided by a school-approved organization or by a school-approved outside vendor.
Competitive foods cannot be sold in competition with the district’s food service program. This means they cannot be sold 30 minutes before and 30 minutes after each scheduled meal service on any area of the school campus that is accessible to students.

5. Colorado Healthy Beverage Policy
The Colorado Healthy Beverage Policy has been aligned with the federal Smart Snacks Policy
Allowable beverages include:
Plain or carbonated water
Low-fat Milk (1%)
Non-fat Milk
100% fruit or vegetable juice
100% fruit or vegetable juice diluted with water
Size allowances vary with school level (see next slides)

6. Allowable Beverages for Elementary
8 oz. portions of fruit and vegetable juice (must be 100%)
No added sweeteners
< 120 calories per 8 oz. portion
8 oz. portions of milk (must be 1%)
<150 calories per 8 oz. portion
Non-dairy milk must be nutritionally equivalent to milk per USDA guidelines
Bottled Water: Plain or Carbonated

7. Middle School Allowable Beverages
10 oz. portions of fruit and vegetable juice (must be 100%)
No added sweeteners
< 120 calories per 8 oz. portion
10 oz. portions of milk (must be 1%)
<150 calories per 8 oz. portion
Non-dairy milk must be nutritionally equivalent to milk per USDA guidelines
Bottled Water: Plain or Carbonated

8. High School Allowable Beverages
12 oz. portions of fruit and vegetable juice (must be 100%)
No added sweeteners
< 120 calories per 8 oz. portion
12 oz. portions of milk (must be 1%)
<150 calories per 8 oz. portion
Non-dairy milk must be nutritionally equivalent to milk per USDA guidelines
Bottled Water: Plain or Carbonated

9. High School Allowable Beverages
Other beverages (i.e. unsweetened or diet teas, low calorie sport drinks, fitness waters, flavored waters, seltzers and coffees)
Other flavored and/or carbonated beverages that are < 20 ounces must:
Contain < 5 calories per 8 ounces or < 10 calories per 20 ounces
Other flavored and/or carbonated beverages that are < 12 ounces must:
Contain < 40 calories per 8 ounces or < 60 calories per 12 ounces
Diet soda is prohibited
Caffeinated beverages are allowed
At least 50% of non-milk beverage options must be water and no or low-calorie options

10. Coffee Beverages
Recent USDA FNS updates state that when evaluating coffee beverages, the calories added by any ingredients that are not allowable beverages must be monitored such that the calories from those ingredients do not exceed the low calorie beverage standard of 5 calories per ounce of beverage.
Fat-free milk, flavored and unflavored and 1% unflavored milk are allowable beverages that may be combined with coffee; therefore, the calories from these allowable milk types are not counted when added to coffee beverages.
However, when flavoring is used in coffee beverages where 1% milk is included, then the entire beverage is to be evaluated against the low calorie beverage standard since flavored 1% milk is not an allowable beverage.

11. Smart snacks in schools
Whole-grain rich products; or
First ingredient is a fruit, vegetable, dairy product, or protein food; or
Be a combination food that contains at least ¼ cup fruit and/or vegetable; or
Contain 10% of the Daily Value (DV) of nutrients for calcium, potassium, vitamin D, or dietary fiber
Any food must also meet nutrition requirements
Calories, sodium, total fat, saturated fat, trans fat, and sugar

12. What food items should I be selling?
Bottled water
Low fat/fat-free milk
100% fruit juice
Unsweetened iced tea
Coconut water
Fresh or squeezable fruit
Single-serve fruit bowls
Dried fruit, 100% fruit leather
Granola or natural snack bars
Whole grain crackers
Popcorn
Baked Chips
Nuts, trail mix
Fresh veggies with dip
Frozen 100% fruit bars
Low fat string cheese
Low fat/fat-free yogurt

13. Benefits of selling a la carte items
Gives schools the opportunity to send consistent, positive health messages by offering nutritious choices that comply with USDA standards
The program includes specific criteria that can be used as a guide for efforts to create a healthier school food culture
It’s a great way to bring money back into your food service program
You can convince school and community members that concessions and competitive foods will continue to make money and students will be consuming healthier food and drink options

15. Pricing a la carte items
Price healthy items cheaper than less healthy options
Prices need to be set at a sufficient level to cover all costs
Rounding to the nearest cent is a common practice
The CDE Office of School Nutrition recommends a mark-up of 40%

16. Pricing: Example
You want to start selling Baked Hot Cheetos on your a la carte line. One case costs $31.47 and comes with 104 bags per case.
What should you sell each bag of Cheetos for?

17. Pricing: Answer First you want to figure your cost per serving:
Total case cost ÷ Total # of servings
$31.47 ÷ 104 = $0.30
Next, take your cost per serving and divide that by your mark-up percentage (40%)
$0.30 ÷ .4 = $0.75
You would want to sell your Cheetos for $0.75 per bag

18. Resources Smart Snack Calculator Nonprogram Revenue Tools
Nonprogram Revenue Tools
Smart Snacks and Competitive Foods
smart-snacks