Time and temperature abuse of milk in conditions representing a school cafeteria share table does not meaningfully reduce microbial quality.

Share tables (ST) are tables or stations in school cafeterias where students can return unopened foods and beverages, providing an opportunity to access these items at no cost. Currently, research suggests that milk is among the most wasted items in breakfast and lunch programs in the United States. Share tables present a simple solution for reducing milk waste, but research is needed to understand the microbial spoilage potential of milk in ST. To this end, uninoculated milk cartons and milk cartons inoculated with 2 to 3 log10(cfu/mL) Pseudomonas poae, a fast-growing psychrotroph, was exposed to ambient temperature during winter (mean temperature = 20.3°C) and summer (23.1°C) for 125 min, repeated over 5 d (the length of a school week). Microbial counts in the inoculated milk cartons increased linearly, exceeding the spoilage threshold of 6.0 log10(cfu/mL) after d 3 and after d 4 in the winter and summer season trials, respectively. In the winter trial, the microbial counts for uninoculated milk cartons never exceeded the lower limit of detection, 2.31 log10(cfu/mL), and in the summer trials, microbial counts never reached the spoilage threshold, indicating that initial contamination is a driving factor of microbial milk spoilage. Regardless of sharing status or seasonality, the greatest changes in counts for inoculated milk cartons occurred during overnight refrigeration, ranging from 0.56 to 1.4 log10(cfu/mL), while during the share table ranged from no observable change up to 0.29 log10(cfu/mL), emphasizing that school nutrition personnel should focus efforts on tightly controlling refrigeration temperatures and returning milk to refrigeration as soon as possible. A previously developed model for school cafeteria share tables was adapted to understand the typical residence time of milk in a simulated cafeteria with an ambient temperature share table for the summer and winter seasons over 1,000 wk. Milk was predicted to have a very short mean residence time (85 min) regardless of sharing status or season, with 99.8% of milk consumed, discarded, or donated within the first 2 d. As a result, only 3 out of 451,410 and 6 out of 451,410 simulated milks spoiled in the winter and summer seasons, respectively. The data generated here can be used to inform science-based decision-making for including milk in share tables, or applied to any system where one might have to accept short-term unrefrigerated storage of milk to meet a waste reduction or food security goal.

Associations between cooking self-efficacy, attitude, and behaviors among people living alone: A cross-sectional survey analysis.

Cooking-related literacy and attitudes may play important roles in preventing and reducing diet-related chronic diseases and nutrition disparities. People living alone are an under-researched but growing population who face above average food insecurity rates. This study's objectives were to 1) test how cooking self-efficacy and attitude are stratified demographically among a sample of people living alone, focusing on variations across gender, age, and food security, and 2) examine how cooking self-efficacy and attitude are associated with two indicators of cooking behavior - cooking frequency and convenience orientation. We draw from a cross-sectional survey analysis of 493 adults living alone in Illinois, USA with validated measures for cooking self-efficacy, attitude, frequency, convenience orientation, and demographic characteristics. Hierarchical linear regression models were used to examine demographic factors explaining variation in self-efficacy and attitude, with attention to interactions between gender, food insecurity, and age. Poisson and OLS linear regression models were used to examine associations between self-efficacy and attitude and cooking frequency and convenience orientation. We find cooking-related self-efficacy and attitude showed strong but distinct associations with cooking frequency and convenience orientation. Overall, food insecure groups had lower self-efficacy than those who were food secure; however, food insecure women had higher self-efficacy than men in similar positions, apart from older-adult women who held particularly low efficacy. Cooking attitudes varied in small ways, notably with food insecure younger and older women possessing more negative cooking attitudes than middle-aged women. This research highlights the importance of understanding the cooking-related orientations of single-living people, while demonstrating that this group's ability to prevent and manage food insecurity is not uniform. These results can inform targeted interventions around food and nutrition insecurity, cooking attitudes, and self-efficacy among single-living populations.

Training Preferences of School Food Service Staff Vary by Role in the School Nutrition Program.

Professional development has been identified as a critical component for school nutrition professionals (SNPs) to successfully implement school meal standards in the United States. However, training needs may vary based on different factors. This study examined (1) the topics of highest priority for SNPs; (2) preferred learning methods; (3) where and when trainings should be conducted; and (4) whether responses differ according to important factors including position type, school locale (urban vs. rural), or job experience. Participants completed surveys that included questions on demographics and preferences for learning methods and training topics (n = 492). Descriptive statistics characterized survey responses. Chi square tests assessed differences in learning method and training topic preferences by participant role, locale, and job experience; Cramer's V assessed the strength of association for each chi square result. Qualitative responses to open-ended questions were analyzed using an inductive thematic analysis method. Nearly all training topic preferences were significantly different (p < 0.001 using Bonferroni method) when stratified by role. Significant differences were also observed for school locale and years of experience, but to a lesser degree. There was less variation in learning method preferences across staff role. Qualitative results (n = 93) identified three key themes related to training needs: role-specific trainings, innovative learning methods, and geographic access. The combination of quantitative and qualitative analysis indicate that professional development for SNPs should mostly be conducted in-person, be easily accessible, and include hands-on activities. Further, training should be tailored by job role and address situational barriers unique to the geographic area.

Eating Competent Parents of 4th Grade Youth from a Predominantly Non-Hispanic White Sample Demonstrate More Healthful Eating Behaviors than Non-Eating Competent Parents.

The purpose of this study was to determine if the associations between eating competence (EC) and eating behaviors that were found in a USA sample of predominantly Hispanic parents of 4th grade youth could be replicated in a USA sample of predominantly non-Hispanic white parents of 4th graders. Baseline responses from parents (n = 424; 94% white) of youth participating in a year-long educational intervention were collected using an online survey. Validated measures included the Satter Eating Competence Inventory (ecSI 2.0TM), in-home fruit/vegetable (FV) availability, healthful eating behavior modeling, and FV self-efficacy/outcome expectancies (SE/OE). Data were analyzed with general linear modeling and cluster analyses. The findings replicated those from the primarily Hispanic sample. Of the 408 completing all ecSI 2.0TM items, 86% were female, 65% had a 4-year degree or higher, and 53% were EC (ecSI 2.0TM score ≥ 32). Compared with non-EC parents, EC modeled more healthful eating, higher FV SE/OE, and more in-home FV availability. Behaviors clustered into those striving toward more healthful practices (strivers; n = 151) and those achieving them (thrivers; n = 255). Striver ecSI 2.0TM scores were lower than those of thrivers (29.6 ± 7.8 vs. 33.7 ± 7.6; p < 0.001). More EC parents demonstrated eating behaviors associated with childhood obesity prevention than non-EC parents, encouraging education that fosters parent EC, especially in tandem with youth nutrition education.

School Wellness Programs: Magnitude and Distribution in New York City Public Schools.

BACKGROUND: Public schools provide students with opportunities to participate in many discretionary, unmandated wellness programs. Little is known about the number of these programs, their distribution across schools, and the kinds of students served. We provide evidence on these questions for New York City (NYC) public schools. METHODS: Data on wellness programs were collected from program websites, NYC's Office of School Food and Wellness, and direct contact with program sponsors for 2013. Programs were grouped into categories, nutrition, fitness, and comprehensive, and were combined with data on school characteristics available from NYC's Department of Education. Numbers of programs and provision of programs were analyzed for relationships with demographic and school structural characteristics, using descriptive statistics and multiple regression. RESULTS: Discretionary wellness programs are numerous, at 18 programs. Little evidence supports inequity according to student race/ethnicity, income, or nativity, but high schools, new schools, co-located schools, small schools, and schools with larger proportions of inexperienced teachers are less likely to provide wellness programs. CONCLUSIONS: Opportunities exist to further the reach of wellness programs in public schools by modifying them for high school adoption and building capacity in schools less likely to have the administrative support to house them.