BISMARCK, ND ( KXNET ) — Moms and dads know it’s not always easy to get your kids to eat.
That’s been a focus for years for school leaders in Bismarck and a nutrition expert in Bismarck says there are some new standards for school lunches coming from the USDA in the next few years.

When it’s lunchtime at Northridge elementary, it’s ready or not for the kitchen staff.

“It’s a fast-paced job. I’m here four and a half hours a day, and you’re on your feet on the run the whole time,” explained child nutrition assistant Joette Knapp.

“My favorite food is the chili. I did not expect that would be on the menu,” Northridge elementary 4th grader Eva Parent said.

As the kids file through, trays in hand, there are plenty of options to pick from.

“If it’s something I don’t love, there’s a second option I take. My favorite of them is the pizza pack or the brunch for lunch,” Parent said.

“When I went through school 100 years ago, they put it on your plate and you ate it. You had no other choices, and if you didn’t like it, you just didn’t eat it,” said Knapp.

But much of that has changed over the years with schools encouraged to find healthier options. Now, it’s changing once again with new standards announced this week from the White House.

“There’s a meal pattern we have to follow for our breakfast and lunch program in order to be reimbursed from the government,” explained BPS child nutrition director Michelle Wagner.

Among some of the new standards coming from the USDA, they want more emphasis on whole grains and less on added sugars. eventually, they want less than 10% of a child’s weekly calories coming from added sugars.

One example is the ever-popular chocolate milk. Bismarck school leaders say with six grams of added sugars, they’re already below that 10 percent.

“We use a reduced sugar cereal. we have a reduced sugar yogurt, so we already have some of those things in place, this is just kind of taking it to the next step,” Wagner said.

Some of the standards will go into effect over the next three years and it may mean Bismarck school leaders shop around without making drastic changes to the menu.

“They’ve done an excellent job of getting foods that are a lot less sugar or have whole wheat flour in them. Some of the times, the kids don’t even notice,” Knapp said.

“Again, if they’re actually eating it and it doesn’t end up in the garbage, we feel like that’s a successful meal,” said Wagner.

Most of the new nutrition standards begin in the fall of 2025.

Federal leaders say the goal is to lower the risk among kids for diabetes, heart disease and some forms of cancer.

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