in assessing the food options in the school 
environment and developing and imple-
menting an action plan to promote a bal-
anced and healthy diet; 
‘‘(vi) provide nutrient content or nu-
trition information on meals served through 
the school lunch or school breakfast pro-
grams and items sold a la carte during 
meal times; 
‘‘(vii) encourage the increased con-
sumption of a variety of healthy foods 
through new initiatives such as salad bars 
and fruit bars; and 
‘‘(viii) provide nutrition education, in-
cluding sports nutrition education, for 
teachers, coaches, food service staff, athletic 
trainers, and school nurses. 
‘‘(5) LIMITATION.—Materials prepared under 
this subsection regarding agricultural commodities, 
food, or beverages must be factual and without bias. 
‘‘(6) REPORT.—Within 18 months of completion 
of the projects and evaluations, the Secretary shall 
transmit to the Committee on Education and the 
Workforce of the House of Representatives and the 
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pen-
sions and the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition 
and Forestry of the Senate a report describing the re-
sults of the evaluation of the pilot projects and shall 
make such reports available to the public, including 
through the Internet. 
‘‘(e) NUTRITION EDUCATION SUPPORT.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out the purpose 
of this section to support nutrition education, the Sec-
retary may provide for technical assistance and 
grants to improve the quality of school meals and ac-
cess to local foods in schools and institutions. 
‘‘(2) SCHOOL MEALS INITIATIVE.—The Secretary 
may provide assistance to enable State educational 
agencies to—
‘‘(A) implement the recommendations of the 
Secretary’s School Meals Initiative for Healthy 
Children; 
‘‘(B) increase the consumption of fruits, 
vegetables, low-fat dairy products, and whole 
grains; 
‘‘(C) reduce saturated fat and sodium in 
school meals; 
‘‘(D) improve school nutritional environ-
ments; and
‘‘(E) conduct other activities that aid 
schools in carrying out the Secretary’s School 
Meals Initiative for Healthy Children. 
‘‘(3) ACCESS TO LOCAL FOODS.—The Secretary 
may provide assistance, through competitive matching 
grants and technical assistance, to schools and non-
profit entities for projects that—
‘‘(A) improve access to local foods in schools 
and institutions participating in programs 
under the Richard B. Russell National School 
Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1751 et seq.) and Section 
4 of this Act through farm-to-cafeteria activities 
that may include the acquisition of food and ap-
propriate equipment and the provision of train-
ing and education; 
‘‘(B) are, at a minimum, designed to pro-
cure local foods from small- and medium-sized 
farms for school meals; 
‘‘(C) support nutrition education activities 
or curriculum planning that incorporates the 
participation of schoolchildren in farm and agri-
culture education activities; 
‘‘(D) develop a sustained commitment to 
farm-to-cafeteria projects in the community by
linking schools, agricultural producers, parents, 
and other community stakeholders; 
‘‘(E) require $100,000 or less in Federal 
contributions; 
‘‘(F) require a Federal share of costs not to 
exceed 75 percent; 
‘‘(G) provide matching support in the form 
of cash or in kind contributions (including fa-
cilities, equipment, or services provided by State 
and local governments and private sources); and 
‘‘(H) cooperate in an evaluation to be car-
ried out by the Secretary.’’; and 
(3) by redesignating subsection (i) as subsection 
(f), and amending paragraph (1) of such subsection 
to read as follows: 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be ap-
propriated such sums as may be necessary for car-
rying out this section for fiscal years 2004 through 
2008.’’. 
SEC. 303. FRUITS AND VEGETABLE COMMODITIES. 
Section 6(c)(1)(D) of the Richard B. Russell National 
School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1755(c)(1)(D)) is amended by 
inserting ‘‘, and fruits and vegetables’’ before the period.
SEC. 304. FLUID MILK. 
Section 9(a)(2) of the Richard B. Russell National 
School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1758(a)(2)) is amended to 
read as follows: 
‘‘(2) FLUID MILK.—
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—Lunches served by 
schools participating in the school lunch pro-
gram under this Act—
‘‘(i) shall offer students fluid milk in a 
variety of fat contents; 
‘‘(ii) may offer students flavored and 
unflavored fluid milk and lactose-free fluid 
milk; and 
‘‘(iii) shall provide a substitute for 
fluid milk for students whose disability re-
stricts their diet, upon receipt of a written 
statement from a licensed physician that 
identifies the disability that restricts the 
student’s diet and that specifies the sub-
stitute for fluid milk. 
‘‘(B) SUBSTITUTES.—
‘‘(i) STANDARDS FOR SUBSTITUTION.—
Schools may substitute for the fluid milk 
provided under subparagraph (A), a non-
dairy beverage that is nutritionally equiva-
lent to fluid milk and meets nutritional
standards as established by the Secretary 
(which shall, among other requirements to 
be determined by the Secretary, include for-
tification of calcium, protein, vitamin A, 
and vitamin D to levels found in cow’s 
milk) for students who cannot consume 
fluid milk because of a medical or other spe-
cial dietary need other than a disability de-
scribed in subparagraph (A)(iii). 
‘‘(ii) NOTICE.—Such substitutions may 
be made if the school notifies the State agen-
cy that it is implementing a variation al-
lowed under this subparagraph, and if such 
substitution is requested by written state-
ment of a medical authority or by a stu-
dent’s parent or legal guardian that identi-
fies the medical or other special dietary 
need that restricts the student’s diet, pro-
vided that the school shall not be required to 
provide beverages other than those it has 
identified as acceptable substitutes. 
‘‘(iii) EXCESS
EXPENSES
BORNE
BY 
THE SCHOOL DISTRICT.—Expenses incurred 
in providing substitutions pursuant to this 
subparagraph that are in excess of those