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20 Kid Friendly Foods Suitable for FMNV

In an effort to improve school nutrition environments, the USDA created the Foods of Minimal Nutritional Value (FMNV) guidelines to govern what types of food can be made available to students during school hours. While these guidelines tell us what foods are not considered nutritional, we're on our own to determine what foods or ingredients are nutritional enough to serve our students. And that's a good thing, because we're basically free to serve anything not specifically included on the government's list of prohibitions.

Examples of what's not prohibited

We've made you're job easy by listing examples of 20 kid friendly foods suitable for serving in school. These examples may help provide some insight to the types of foods or ingredients not specifically prohibited and should therefore generally be considered acceptable to serve your students.

  • Fruits and Vegetables - fresh, canned, or dried (e.g. - raisins)
  • Dairy - Ice Cream, Milk, Cheese, Yogurt, Cream Cheese, etc.
  • Non-carbonated beverages - Juice Boxes, Fruit Punch, Tea, Sports Drinks
  • Breads - Sandwich bread, Bagels, Pretzels, Tortillas, etc.
  • Chocolate - M&Ms, chips, etc.
  • Cereals - Rice Krispies, Chex, etc.
  • Puddings
  • Peanut Butter (be careful of peanut allergies)
  • Snack Crackers - Graham Crackers, Ritz, Goldfish
  • Jelly
  • Cool Whip
  • Food Coloring
  • Deli slices (e.g. - ham or turkey)
  • Sugar and Spices - Cinnamon, etc.
  • Popcorn
  • Nuts - almond, cashew, macadamia, walnut
  • Seeds - pumpkin, sunflower, sesame, flax, poppy (all very healthy)
  • Corn or Potato Chips
  • Dips, Dressings, Sauces, or Salsas
  • Baked Goods - Cakes, Cupcakes, Cookies, Pies, etc.

When in doubt, keep it out

Of course, always use your own discretion when creating recipes with any of these ingredients. Check with local, state, or federal laws, and/or compliance within your school or district policies. And always remember to consider students with allergies.

 
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