What foods can be brought to school from home?

Mobile County Public School System has several schools that are designated as Peanut or Nut-Free Schools or Classrooms due to students having allergies to these foods.

People with peanut and tree nut allergies follow certain steps of avoiding foods that have the allergen in them.  They also read labels, and don't eat food if they don't know its origins, and ask questions to stay aware of cross-contamination.   Some people with peanut and nut allergies may react to traces of nut dust in the air (from peanut shells, for example) or may have reaction to residues of peanuts and nuts.  Peanuts and nuts are full of natural oils that leave residues.  While the residue can be removed with cleaners and sanitizers that are used in the schools, it can be difficult or impossible to thoroughly remove residue from peanuts and nuts in the middle of lunch or to know to clean oils/residues off of tainted walls or doorknobs during the school day.  Many times, the residue or oil from peanuts and nuts may not be visible.

With these issues at hand and because peanut and tree nut allergies can be life-threatening, may schools have been designated as having peanut or nut-free lunch tables, classrooms or even declaring the entire campus as being  peanut or nut-free.  It is up to the principal, school nurses and the Child Nutrition Program along with the student's physician to determine if the entire school or only areas of the school need to be peanut or nut-free.

Label reading is one of the best ways to determine if a food is okay to be brought to school.  Here are some rules of thumb for reading labels:

•·        Under federal law, peanuts and tree nuts have to be clearly identified in a food label if they're used as an ingredient.

•·        Foods that pose as a possibility of manufacturing cross-contamination - that is, where nuts were processed on one line and then another nut-free food was made on the same line, where it could potentially have been contaminated with nuts - are not allowed in peanut or nut-free schools.  These labels may have warnings like "may include traces of peanuts", etc.  Although, many products may not have a warning.  Just be cautious if you see any warnings on the package.

Foods okay to bring into a peanut or nut-free school:

• Fresh Fruit.  Bananas, apples, pears, oranges, grapes, etc. just to name a few.
• Cheese.  Most cheese is nut-free, including kid-friendly string cheese and convenient cheese cubes.
• Vegetables.  Baby carrots, cherry tomatoes, broccoli and cauliflower are among the vegetables some students will eat raw.  Small containers of plain yogurt, salad dressing, or sour cream may be good dips.
• Raisins and other dried fruits.
• Pudding and Gelatin cups.
• Popcorn
• Applesauce and other canned fruits that come in single-serving cups.
• Fruit Snacks.
• Chips:  potato, tortilla, etc.
• Lunch meat and sandwich bread.
• Juice, water, etc.
• Some cookies, snack cakes and crackers.  These are more likely to contain nuts or to pose cross-contamination risks than other items on this list, so be sure to check labels very carefully.

Be sure to check ingredients on labels and also manufacturing practices. 

As an alternative to packing lunches for your child, the Child Nutrition Program has breakfast and lunch available at each school in the Mobile County Public School System.  The cost of breakfast is $1.00 for paid students.  The cost of lunch is $1.75 for paid elementary students and $2.00 for paid middle and high school students.  We do encourage for parents to complete a meal application (available in the school cafeteria) and apply for free or reduced meals if you are not already on the program.  The cost of a reduced breakfast is $0.30 and a reduced lunch is $0.40.  If you have questions concerning the Free and Reduced Meal Applications Program please call 221-4618.

For questions concerning this information, please contact:

Suzanne Yates, MS, RD, LD

Food Service Director

Child Nutrition Program

Mobile County Public School System

251-221-4374

Reference:  Victoria Groce, About.com; Why is my Child's School Nut-Free?  What food can she bring? Updated:  June 09, 2008