A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT directing the state board of education to establish nutrition standards for foods and beverages available in school‑operated vending machines, school stores, snack bars, fund-raisers, and all other food sale operations on the school campus during the instructional day.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  G.S. 115C‑264.3 reads as rewritten:
"§ 115C‑264.3.  Child Nutrition Program standards; standards for other foods sold on the school campus during the instructional day.
(a)	The State Board of Education, in direct consultation with a cross section of local directors of child nutrition services, shall establish statewide nutrition standards for school meals, a la carte foods and beverages, and items served in the After School Snack Program administered by the Department of Public Instruction and child nutrition programs of local school administrative units. The nutrition standards will promote gradual changes to increase fruits and vegetables, increase whole grain products, and decrease foods high in total fat, trans fat, saturated fat, and sugar. The nutrition standards adopted by the State Board of Education shall be implemented initially in elementary schools. All elementary schools shall achieve a basic level by the end of the 2009‑2010 school year, followed by middle schools and then high schools.
(b)	The State Board of Education, in direct consultation with a cross section of child health advocates, local directors of child nutrition programs, representatives from beverage and snack industries, and members of the Health and Wellness Trust Fund's Childhood Obesity Study Commission, shall also establish statewide nutrition standards for foods and beverages available in school‑operated vending machines, school stores, snack bars, fund-raisers, and all other food sale operations on the school campus during the instructional day. The nutrition standards for beverages and snacks will promote the gradual reduction of total fat, trans fat, saturated fat, sugar, and calories in foods sold while increasing nutrient density.
The State Board of Education shall examine the standards on an annual basis and make modifications that reflect current products in the marketplace, best practices in the industry, and science‑based evidence as reflected in the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, published by the United States Department of Health and Human Services."
SECTION 2.  This act is effective when it becomes law.