Agency Information Collection Activities: Scratch Cooking Assessment & Learning Evaluation (SCALE) and Partnerships for Local Agriculture and Nutrition Transformation in Schools (PLANTS) Data Request for School Food Authorities, 15544-15545 [2024-04492]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
• Food and Nutrition Service

[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 43 (Monday, March 4, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 15544-15545]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-04492]



[[Page 15544]]

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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Food and Nutrition Service


Agency Information Collection Activities: Scratch Cooking 
Assessment & Learning Evaluation (SCALE) and Partnerships for Local 
Agriculture and Nutrition Transformation in Schools (PLANTS) Data 
Request for School Food Authorities

AGENCY: Food and Nutrition Service (FNS), USDA.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Chef Ann Foundation (CAF) is a cooperative argreement 
recipient from the United States Department of Agriculture's (USDA's) 
Food and Nutrition Service (FNS). CAF plans to collect additional 
information from sub-grantees, based on an assessment and data report, 
which is beyond the information already approved under OMB Control 
Number: 0584-0512 (Expiration Date: July 31, 2025). FNS already has OMB 
approval for collection of information associated with these grants 
under the Uniform Grant Application for Non-Entitlement Discretionary 
Grants, as approved under OMB Control Number: 0584-0512. This notice 
solicits public comment on the additional information proposed for 
collection.

DATES  (if applicable): Written comments must be received on or before 
April 3, 2024.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be sent to: Brittany Gorman, Food and Nutrition 
Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, via email to 
[email protected]. Comments will also be accepted through the 
Federal eRulemaking Portal. Go to https://www.regulations.gov and follow 
the online instructions for submitting comments electronically.
    All comments will be a matter of public record.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information or 
copies of this information collection should be directed to Brittany 
Gorman at 703-305-2621 or [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the 
proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper 
performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the 
information shall have practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the 
agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of 
information, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions 
that were used; (c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity 
of the information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden 
of the collection of information on those who are to respond, including 
use of appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or other 
technological collection techniques or other forms of information 
technology.

Background

    In 2023, CAF was selected as one of four cooperative agreement 
holders for the USDA FNS Healthy Meals Incentives Initiative School 
Food System Transformation Challenge. As part of this initiative, CAF 
created the sub-grant program, Partnerships for Local Agriculture and 
Nutrition Transformation in Schools (PLANTS), and will award eight 
proposals for projects working to build more resilient local food 
supply chains and expand scratch cooking in schools. PLANTS is already 
approved under Uniform Grant Application for Non-Entitlement 
Discretionary Grants, OMB Control Number 0584-0512 with an expiration 
of July 31, 2025. Eligible applications must be collaboratively 
administered by at least three Partners and no more than five Partners. 
An eligible application must include at least one School Food Authority 
(SFA) and is permitted to include up to four SFAs. SFAs that are 
awarded a PLANTS grant will be required to complete the SCALE 
assessment and the PLANTS Data Request annually, for a total of three 
times, throughout the grant period (April 2024-June 2027).

Scratch Cooking in School Meal Programs

    Every day 31 million children rely on school meals to meet their 
nutritional needs so they are well nourished and ready to learn. CAF is 
dedicated to promoting whole-ingredient, scratch cooking in schools by 
providing school nutrition professionals with the funding and support 
they need to transition their meal programs to include more scratch 
cooking.
    Scratch cooking uses real food with real ingredients and has the 
potential to catalyze multiple benefits across the school food system--
environmental, economic, social. In the context of USDA's Healthy Meals 
Incentives Initiative and the PLANTS grant, scratch cooking also 
enables SFAs to play a critical role in building more resilient 
regional food systems. By leveraging their food purchases, SFAs have 
the potential to become meaningful markets for local producers (e.g., 
farmers, ranchers, fisherfolk), food hubs, and other food businesses. 
These dollars have powerful ripple effects on local economies that 
build greater prosperity and food system resilience while feeding 
children fresher, high-quality, and nutritious foods.
    The benefits of scratch cooking are clear. However, many SFAs that 
want to improve their meal programs do not have the bandwidth to assess 
their current operations or determine where to start.

How does the scale assessement and plants data request support scratch 
cooking in schools?

    After over 12 years of school food operational support, CAF built 
SCALE, an online database that offers the first comprehensive self-
assessment focused on improving nutrition, enhancing school meal 
programs, and increasing scratch cooking. This assessment examines a 
district's food service operation practices in 6 Key Areas:

 Food--menu cycles, procurement, reporting
 Scratch Cooking--ingredients, processed elements
 Finances--budgets, revenue/deficit, labor cost
 Facilities--equipment, production, storage
 Human Resources--personnel, professional development
 Marketing--communication channels, lunchroom education 
activities

    Once a district completes the assessment, the platform generates an 
individualized report with recommended practices designed to increase 
operational capacity and levels of scratch cooking. The PLANTS Data 
Request, which has been customized for the PLANTS program, supplements 
data collected from SFAs via the SCALE assessment and includes up to 
two years of data related to an SFA's meal counts, financial, 
procurement, menu, educational, and marketing practices. The SCALE 
assessment and PLANTS Data Request lay the foundation for all strategic 
planning, technical assistance, and evaluative support that CAF 
provides SFAs to transition to scratch cooking and achieve their PLANTS 
project goals.
    Affected Public: Business or other for profit; and State, local, 
and Tribal government. Respondent groups identified include a 
representative from each subgrantee and any Partner that is a SFA or 
School District. Representatives may include the Food Service Director 
and/or a designated food service employee. A School Food Authority is 
defined as the administering body for the operation of

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a school feeding program (such as the National School Lunch Program and 
School Breakfast Program). This may be a school district, several 
school districts, or individual schools. Schools can be public, public 
charter, or private schools.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: The total estimated number of 
respondents is 32. PLANTS will award eight grants to projects that are 
collaboratively administered by at least three partners and no more 
than five partners. An eligible application must include at least one 
SFA and is permitted to include up to four SFAs. Therefore, a minimum 
of eight SFAs and a maximum of 32 SFAs will complete the SCALE 
assessment and PLANTS Data Request. It is expected that a majority of 
the Directors of the SFAs will complete the assessment (24), while 
larger organizations may require other food service personnel to 
complete the assessment (8).
    Estimated Number of Responses per Respondent: The estimated number 
of responses per respondent is 1 per year. SFAs will be asked to 
complete the SCALE assessment and PLANTS Data Request three separate 
times during the grant implementation period between April 2024-June 
2027.
    Estimated Total Annual Responses: 32.
    Estimated Time per Response: The estimated average time for this 
collection is 4.5 hours. FNS estimates that it will take each 
respondent 1.5 hours to complete the SCALE assessment and 3 hours to 
complete the PLANTS Data Request.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 144.00 hours. See the 
table below for estimated total annual burden for each type of 
respondent.

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                                                                                                                          Estimated avg.
                                                                             Estimated       Responses     Total annual      number of       Estimated
                                                     Respondents             number of     annually per      responses       hours per      total hours
                                                                            respondents     respondent                       response
                                            (A).........................             (B)             (C)     (B) x (C) =             (E)     (D) x (E) =
                                                                                                                     (D)                             (F)
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                                                                                          Reporting Burden
                                           -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Local Government..........................  Director of Food Services...              23               1              23             4.5           103.5
                                            Food Service Employee.......               8               1               8             4.5              36
                                           -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Sub-total.............................  ............................              31  ..............              31  ..............           139.5
For-Profit Business.......................  Food Service Director.......               1               1               1             4.5             4.5
                                           -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Total.................................  ............................           32.00               1           32.00             4.5          144.00
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    The supporting statement for approved Information Collection 
Request 0584-0512 explicitly states that if FNS decides to use the 
uniform grant application package, FNS will note in the grant 
solicitation that applicants must use the uniform grant application 
package, and that the information collection has already been approved 
by OMB. If FNS determines that it needs grant applicants to provide 
additional information not contained in the uniform package, then FNS 
will publish at least a 30-day notice soliciting comments on its 
proposal to collect different or additional information before issuing 
the grant solicitation. FNS is publishing this 30-day notice to solicit 
public comment and meet that requirement.
    FNS will consider and utilize public comments to adjust the 
collection of additional information as appropriate and necessary.

Tameka Owens,
Assistant Administrator, Food and Nutrition Service.
[FR Doc. 2024-04492 Filed 3-1-24; 8:45 am]
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