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The overall options for healthy food choices and good nutritional quality on campus were mostly limited by the availability and higher prices of products. These findings could be used to develop new policy perspectives for the offering of healthy food items and to facilitate better food choices among students in a healthier food environment.

In addition to playing a pivotal role in assessing customer satisfaction, menus play an important role in the foodservice production process. Additionally, the type and quality of foods offered on menus may have a direct correlation with health promotion. To verify the nutritional quality of menus, a qualitative assessment method – the Qualitative Evaluation of Menu Components (QEMC) – is being proposed. The method is derived from the Standard QEMC and offers variations such as the Buffet QEMC and the Portugal QEMC. Menu items can be improved during the planning stage when using this assessment, which allows for corrections prior to production. These changes can lead to a healthier and more attractive menu from the sensory point of view, fulfilling the role of relieving hunger and feeding with quality, thus promoting health through the foods offered.

Objective: To analyse the Na content and labelling of processed and ultraprocessed food products marketed in Brazil. Design: Cross-sectional study. Setting: A large supermarket in Florianopolis, southern Brazil. Subjects: Ingredient lists and Na information on nutrition labels of all processed and ultra-processed pre-prepared meals and prepared ingredients, used in lunch or dinner, available for sale in the supermarket. Results: The study analysed 1416 products, distributed into seven groups and forty-one subgroups. Five products did not have Na information. Most products (58·8 %; 95 % CI 55·4, 62·2 %) had high Na content (>600 mg/100 g). In 78·0 % of the subgroups, variation in Na content was at least twofold between similar products with high and low Na levels, reaching 634-fold difference in the 'garnishes and others' subgroup. More than half of the products (52·0 %; 95 % CI 48·2, 55·6 %) had at least one Na-containing food additive. There was no relationship between the appearance of salt on the ingredients list (first to third position on the list) and a product's Na content (high, medium or low; P = 0·08). Conclusions: Most food products had high Na content, with great variation between similar products, which presents new evidence for reformulation opportunities. There were inconsistencies in Na labelling, such as lack of nutritional information and incomplete ingredient descriptions. The position of salt on the ingredients list did not facilitate the identification of high-Na foods. We therefore recommend a reduction in Na in these products and a review of Brazilian legislation.

Objective: This study aimed to analyze serving sizes declared on food labels with respect to their conformity to Brazilian law, variability among similar foods, and relationship to energy values. Methods: Food label information from 24 groups of processed foods was collected in one supermarket in southern Brazil. Declared serving sizes were classified into five groups according to their level of compliance with those recommended by law: <70% and >130% inadequate and 70-99%, 100% and 101-130% adequate. Descriptive analyses, Spearman correlations, and Kruskal-Wallis tests were applied. Results: A total of 1,953 food products were analyzed, of which 72% reported serving sizes exactly equal to those recommended, and 14% fell within the acceptable 60% range established by law. Even though most foods complied with the law, there was a variation in declared serving sizes among similar foods, with the largest ranges observed for hamburger and meatballs (364 g). In addition, declared serving sizes were significantly and positively correlated to energy value in most food groups, revealing that smaller serving sizes may be used to report lower energy value. Conclusion: The 60% acceptable serving size range established by law may lead to a lack of serving size standardization and significant variability in declared energy values on labels. This can potentially make labels confusing when comparing similar products and thus affect food choices. It is necessary to revise Brazilian law so that serving sizes are standardized among similar foods in order to facilitate healthy food choices.

Resumo O objetivo foi analisar o investimento financeiro para a aquisição de alimentos destinados à alimentação escolar em um município no Sul do Brasil. As licitações, as chamadas públicas e a prestação de contas do PNAE foram analisadas por meio das variáveis: I) valores de complementação financeira do município; II) percentual de recursos destinado à compra de alimentos da Agricultura Familiar (AF) e aos alimentos Recomendados, Restritos, Proibidos e outros. Comparação de proporções foi o teste utilizado para identificar diferenças entre investimentos. A complementação financeira do município denotou 65% do total. O valor total empregado para a aquisição de alimentos foi: 65,5% Recomendados, 27,9% Restritos, 6,5% Outros e 0% Proibidos. Os gastos com alimentos Recomendados foram maiores (p < 0,001) do que com os demais grupos. A AF forneceu exclusivamente alimentos Recomendados, representando 12,1% do investimento total (municipal e federal) e 29,5% dos recursos federais. A compra direta da AF contribuiu para aquisição de alimentos Recomendados. A complementação financeira do município não foi direcionada à AF, podendo comprometer o potencial do programa de alimentação escolar na promoção de sistemas agroalimentares sustentáveis, saudáveis e locais.

Article based on the master' s thesis of GM VIDAL, intitled "Avaliação de cardápios com alimentos orgânicos da alimentação escolar em municípios de Santa Catarina". Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina;2013 A B S T R A C T ObjectiveTo assess compliance of school menu planning with the National School Food Program's regulations. MethodsThis cross-sectional study analyzed 133 menus for 542 schools in 49 municipalities of the state of Santa Catarina. The menus were assessed according to the National School Food Program's regulations, the "Dietary Guidelines for the Brazilian Population" and the "Qualitative Evaluation of Menu Components for Schools". The data were analyzed by descriptive statistics. ResultsNearly all (98.5%) municipalities met the requirement of technical responsibility for menu development and 81.0% acquired foods from family farms. The menus contained fruits (87.2%) and non-starchy vegetables (94.0%), but the frequencies of fruits and non-starchy vegetables were smaller than two to three times a week. The most common high-sodium and high-fat foods were commercially processed meats (53.0%), but their frequency was smaller than once a week. Likewise, the frequencies of beverages (natural fruit juice, coffee, and