What Are Food Service Guidelines?

Food service guidelines are standards for healthier food and beverages and food service operations in worksite and community settings. Food service guidelines are important because people often lack access to healthier foods in settings where they live, work, learn, heal, and play.

Each year, chronic diseases account for 70% of all deaths in the United States. Poor diets lead to chronic illnesses, such as heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and obesity.

More than 7 million adults eat or drink at a cafeteria on a given day, and over 9 million do so from a vending machine.

Foods that people get at work are generally high in empty calories, sodium, solid fat, added sugars, and refned grains.

Where Can Food Service Guidelines Be Used?

Food Service Guidelines in Public and Private Settings

Food service guidelines can be used in settings where foods are sold, such as federal, state and local government facilities, hospitals and healthcare facilities, colleges and universities, private worksites, parks and recreation centers, and stadiums. They can also be used in venues such as cafeterias and cafés, snack bars and grills, concession stands, micro markets, sundry shops, and vending machines.

Federal Food Service Guidelines

Meanwhile, Food service guidelines, such as the Food Service Guidelines for Federal Facilities, can be adapted for use in other settings, such as correctional institutions, eldercare facilities, faith-based organizations, and food pantries.

The Food Service Guidelines for Federal Facilities (FSG) encourages healthier food service at federal worksites and is a model set of guidelines that can be used or adapted in other settings.
More than 60 scientists and operators from nine federal departments and agencies developed the FSG.
The FSG provides specific standards for food and nutrition (aligned with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans), energy and waste reduction, sourcing of local foods, food safety, and behavioral design (strategies to encourage selection of healthier foods).

What Are The Benefits Of Food Service Guidelines?

Food service guidelines help create a healthy food environment. The guidelines may:

Contribute to health and wellness of employees and visitors.
Create expectations for healthier food and beverage availability.
Strengthen local food systems.
Improve facility management of natural resources.
Increase energy efficiency.
Reduce harmful environmental impact.

Food Service Guidelines in Montgomery, Alabama

The Wellness Coalition helped the Kershaw YMCA in Montgomery, Alabama implement food service guidelines. This action brought healthier snack options to their concessions program serving children and staff.

Watch how we did it in Part 1 and Part 2 of these videos.

Made possible with funding from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.