[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 87 (Friday, May 6, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-10887]


  Federal Register / Vol. 59, No. 87 / Friday, May 6, 1994 /
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[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: May 6, 1994]


                                                    VOL. 59, NO. 87

                                                Friday, May 6, 1994

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Food and Nutrition Service

7 CFR Parts 210 and 220

 

National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program; 
Competitive Foods

AGENCY: Food and Nutrition Service, USDA.

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: On January 6, 1993, the Food and Drug Administration announced 
in a final rule that, effective May 8, 1994, the current food label 
reference values, the U.S. Recommended Daily Allowances (U.S.RDAs), 
will be identified as the Reference Daily Intakes, or RDIs. This change 
is to be one of designation only and the reference values are not being 
modified. The purpose of this rule is to replace the term ``U.S.RDA'' 
wherever used in Food and Nutrition Service program regulations with 
``RDI''.

EFFECTIVE DATE: May 8, 1994.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Lori LeGault, Section Head, Food 
Science and Nutrition Section, Nutrition and Technical Services 
Division, Food and Nutrition Service, USDA, (703) 305-2556.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Classification

Executive Order 12866

    This final rule has been determined to be not significant for 
purposes of Executive Order 12866 and, therefore has not been reviewed 
by the Office of Management and Budget.

Regulatory Flexibility Act

    This rule has been reviewed with regard to the requirements of the 
Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 through 612). The Acting 
Administrator of FNS has certified that this rule will not have a 
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. 
The actual values used in the regulation are not being changed, only 
the name for the values is changing. Therefore, this change will have 
no effect on small entities.

Executive Order 12778

    This final rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12778, 
Civil Justice Reform. This rule is intended to have preemptive effect 
with respect to any state or local laws, regulations or policies which 
conflict with its provisions or which would otherwise impede its full 
implementation. This rule is not intended to have retroactive effect 
unless so specified in the ``Effective Date'' section of this preamble. 
There are no administrative procedures which must be exhausted prior to 
any judicial challenge to the provisions of this rule or the 
application of its provisions.

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance

    The National School Lunch Program and the School Breakfast Program 
are listed in the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance under No. 
10.555 and 10.553 respectively. Both programs are subject to the 
provisions of Executive Order 12372 which requires intergovernmental 
consultation with State and local officials. (7 CFR part 3015, subpart 
V and final rule-related notice at 48 FR 29112, June 24, 1983).

Paperwork Reduction Act

    No new data collection or recordkeeping requiring Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) approval under the Paperwork Reduction Act 
of 1980 (44 U.S.C. 3501 through 3502) are included in this rule.
    The Administrator of FNS has determined pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 
553(b)(3)(B) that prior notice and comment on this rule prior to 
implementation is unnecessary and contrary to public interest, and 
therefore good cause exists for making this rule effective without 
prior public comment. This document makes technical changes and imposes 
no new requirements. This rule updates 7 CFR parts 210 and 220 to 
incorporate a change made in the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) 
nutrition labeling regulations. There is no need for public comment 
because the change from the U.S.RDA reference to the RDI reference does 
not effect the basis of the regulation. In addition, FDA has already 
made this change in the nutrition labeling regulations the competitive 
foods rule must make the change in order to refer to an accepted 
reference.

Background

    The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requires that certain food 
products be labeled with information sufficient to apprise consumers of 
the nutritional content and value of the products. Food product labels 
are required to indicate on a per serving basis the percentage 
contribution of the product to the recommended daily consumption of 
certain vitamins and minerals considered essential for human nutrition. 
The amounts of these vitamins and minerals recommended for daily 
consumption are known as the U.S. Recommended Daily Allowances or 
U.S.RDAs. The U.S.RDAs are derived by FDA from the ``Recommended Daily 
Allowances,'' published by the Food and Nutrition Board of the National 
Academy of Sciences-National Research Council (NAS-NRC). The Department 
employs the U.S.RDAs in the National School Lunch, 7 CFR 210.11(b); 
Appendix B, and School Breakfast, 7 CFR 220.12(b)(1); appendix B, 
program regulations in describing foods of minimal nutritional value 
which are prohibited from being sold in school food service areas 
during regular meal service. The NAS-NRC Recommended Daily Allowances 
are referenced by the Department in the National School Lunch and Food 
Stamp Program regulations to describe nutritional goals of the 
programs.
    In part to eliminate the public's confusion from the widespread use 
of both the U.S.RDAs and the NAS-NRC Recommended Daily Allowances, and 
in part to reflect recent increases in the scientific knowledge 
concerning human nutrition requirements, FDA is discontinuing use of 
the U.S.RDAs as of May 8, 1994. On that date, the U.S.RDAs will be 
replaced by the Reference Daily Intakes, or RDIs, and the Daily 
Reference Values or DRVs. RDIs will be used to describe recommended 
vitamin, mineral and protein consumption and DRVs in discussing fats 
and carbohydrates. RDI and DRV information will not be used on food 
product labels. Rather, FDA is adopting a new nutrition labeling 
reference, known as the Daily Value, which will combine RDI and DRV 
information and will be required on most packaged food products.
    To coincide with FDA's replacement of the U.S.RDAs with RDIs and 
DRVs, the Department is updating its references to the U.S.RDAs in the 
regulations it administers. Effective May 8, 1994, the National School 
Lunch and School Breakfast Program regulations will be amended by 
substituting the term RDI in place of U.S.RDA. The Department's current 
references to the U.S.RDAs involve only vitamin and mineral content of 
food products. Therefore, no reference need be made by the Department 
to the DRVs as that term will refer only to the fats and carbohydrates. 
References to the NAS-NRC Recommended Daily Allowances in 7 CFR 
210.10(b) and 272.5(b) will be unaffected by this regulatory change.

List of Subjects

7 CFR Part 210

    Food Assistance Programs, National School Lunch Program, Commodity 
School Program, Grant programs-social programs, Nutrition, Children, 
Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Surplus agricultural 
commodities.

7 CFR Part 220

    Food Assistance Programs, School Breakfast Programs, Grant 
programs-social programs, Nutrition, Children, Reporting and 
recordkeeping requirements, Surplus agricultural commodities.
    Accordingly, 7 CFR parts 210 and 220 are amended as follows:

PART 210--NATIONAL SCHOOL LUNCH PROGRAM

    1. The authority citation for part 210 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority: The provisions of part 210 issued under sec. 2-12, 60 
Stat. 230, as amended; sec. 10, 80 Stat. 889, as amended; 84 Stat. 
270; 42 U.S.C. 17511760, 1779.

    2. In Sec. 210.11, the first sentence of paragraph (a)(2) is 
revised to read as follows:


Sec. 210.11  Competitive food services.

    (a) * * *
    (2) Food of minimal nutritional value means: (i) In the case of 
artificially sweetened foods, a food which provides less than five 
percent of the Reference Daily Intakes (RDI) for each of eight 
specified nutrients per serving; and (ii) in the case of all other 
foods, a food which provides less than five percent of the RDI for each 
of eight specified nutrients per 100 calories and less than five 
percent of the RDI for each of eight specified nutrients per serving. * 
* *
* * * * *
    3. In appendix B, Categories of Foods of Minimal Nutritional Value, 
paragraph (b)(1) is amended by removing the acronym ``USRDA'' from the 
second sentence and adding the words ``Reference Daily Intake (RDI)'' 
in its place, and by removing the acronym ``USRDA'' from the third 
sentence and adding the acronym ``RDI'' in its place. 
PART 220--SCHOOL BREAKFAST PROGRAM 
    1. The authority citation for part 220 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority: Secs. 4 and 10 of the Child Nutrition Act of 1966, 80 
Stat. 886, 889 (42 U.S.C. 1773, 1779), unless otherwise noted.

    2. In Sec. 220.2, the first sentence of paragraph (i-1) is revised 
to read as follows: 
Sec. 220.2  Definitions.

* * * * *
    (i-1) Foods of minimal nutritional value means: (1) In the case of 
artificially sweetened foods, a food which provides less than five 
percent of the Reference Daily Intake (RDI) for each of eight specified 
nutrients per serving; (2) in the case of all other foods, a food that 
provides less than five percent of the RDI for each of eight specified 
nutrients per 100 calories and less than five percent of the RDI for 
each of eight specified nutrients per serving. * * *
* * * * *


Sec. 220.12  [Amended]

    3. In Sec. 220.12, the second and third sentences of paragraph 
(b)(1) are amended by removing the acronym ``USRDA'' and adding the 
acronym ``RDI'' in its place.

    Dated: March 31, 1994.
Ellen Haas,
Assistant Secretary for Food and Consumer Services.
[FR Doc. 94-10887 Filed 5-5-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-30-U