DSUSD discusses bill removing ultraprocessed, harmful foods from school lunches
THOUSAND PALMS, Calif. (KESQ) – California legislature is attempting to make school lunches healthy. On Tuesday, the California State Assembly voted to pass AB 1264, which lays out a plan to remove ultraprocessed food from state's school meals.
The bill looks to remove food that are considered "particularly harmful." This comes after numerous studies have linked serving ultraprocessed foods (UPFs) to a risk of developing or dying from adverse health incomes. These include cancer, heart disease, obesity, type 2 diabetes and numerous mental health conditions.
The California legislation hopes to offer a solution to these health risks, with the first step requiring officials to define which ultraprocessed foods are most detrimental to human health. This step has to be completed by July 1, 2026.
The food definition stage will require experts from the University of California and the state's Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment to establish a subcategory of "particularly harmful" ultraprocessed foods. However, since research on UPFs is expanding, the bill requires the definition to be updated every two years.
Officials say AB1264 would be the first legislation removing ultraprocessed foods from school lunches in the nation once passed by the California Senate and signed into law by Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Assemblymembers say they hope to have the bill ready for Newsom's signature by August or September, and if passed it will go into effect on Jan. 1, 2026.
Stay with News Channel 3 to hear from Desert Sands Unified School District on how this could change their current school program, and its importance for student's health.
