Kraft Heinz pulls Lunchables from school meals program
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A pack of Lunchables is displayed in San Anselmo, California. Photo illustration: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
Kraft Heinz said Tuesday it's pulling Lunchables meals from the National School Lunch Program due to flagging demand.
The big picture: The Chicago-based food giant said in a media statement that its decision was not related to a study by U.S. consumer watchdog group Consumer Reports that found Lunchables meal kits for low-income children contained relatively high levels of sodium, lead and cadmium.
Driving the news: Kraft Heinz said "all Lunchables products are safe and made with quality ingredients that meet our own high standards as well as strict safety standards set by government agencies."
- The company said its two school lunch program-compliant Lunchables options to schools "had increased protein" and while "many school administrators were excited to have these," the demand did not meet its targets.
- "Lunchables products are not available in schools this year and we hope to revisit at a future date," it added. "The NSLP compliant Lunchables sales last school year were far less than 1% of overall Lunchables sales, so business impact is negligible."
State of play: Kraft Heinz said when it launched its turkey and cheese and pizza Lunchables meal kits last year that it would mean "more protein and whole grains to keep kids powered throughout the day, reduced saturated fat and sodium," but child nutrition advocates raised concern about the products.
- Following its April study findings, Consumer Reports presented the U.S. Department of Agriculture with a petition with nearly 50,000 people's signatures in September that sought to remove Lunchables from the school lunch program that caters for some 30 million children.
- Kraft Heinz CEO Carlos Abrams-Rivera said during an October call with investors that "negative publicity that we received from that misleading interest group appears to be lingering longer," per Reuters.
What they're saying: "Lunchables and other lunch kits with concerning levels of sodium and harmful chemicals have no place on the school lunch menu," said Brian Ronholm, director of food policy at Consumer Reports, in a statement.
- "We're pleased that Heinz Kraft has pulled Lunchables from the school lunch program after lower than expected demand from school districts across the country. The USDA should maintain stricter eligibility standards for the school lunch programs so that the millions of kids that depend on it get the healthier options they deserve."
Go deeper: Universal school lunches may improve attendance and reduce obesity
