Vending Machine Guidelines

Beverages

Beverages offered in each vending machine shall meet all the following criteria:

• Fruit-based and vegetable-based drinks that are at least 50% fruit or vegetable juice without added caloric sweeteners and do not exceed 12 fluid oz ⁽¹⁾⁽²⁾
• Water, including carbonated water products, with no added caloric sweetener ^(1)(2)(3)
• One-percent fat milk, nonfat milk, or Vitamin D and Calcium fortified soy milk, almond milk, rice milk, and other similar plant-derived milk beverages without added caloric sweetener ⁽¹⁾
• All other beverages that are low calorie (≤ 40 per container) or no-calorie, including diet sodas ⁽²⁾
• 100% vegetable juice (limited to a maximum of 12-ounce container, no added caloric sweeteners, and < 200 milligrams of sodium per container) ⁽²⁾

Snacks

Snack food items offered in each vending machine shall meet all the following criteria for each individual package:

• No more than 250 calories
• No more than 35% calories from fat (excluding legumes, nuts, nut butters, seeds, trail mixes which include nuts, eggs, non-fried vegetables, and cheese packaged for individual sale). ⁽¹⁾⁽³⁾
• No more than 10% of calories from saturated fat (excluding eggs or cheese packaged for individual sale) ^(1)(2)(3)
• No trans fats ⁽¹⁾⁽²⁾
• No more than 35% sugar by weight (not including any fruits and vegetables processed without sugar; canned fruit must be packed in 100% fruit juice or water) ⁽³⁾
  • Exception: yogurt that contains no more than 30 grams of total sugar per 8 ounce container (and adjusted proportionally for smaller containers)
• No more than 360 mg sodium ⁽³⁾

Individual Entrée Items

Means food generally regarded as the primary food in a meal and that contains two or more of the following groups: meat or meat alternatives such as tofu, grains or bread, or vegetables or fruit that are eaten together, including but not limited to, sandwiches, pizza, hamburger on a bun, burrito, chef's salad, fruit and cheese platter, backed potato with chili or chicken stir-fry.

• Entrée items shall not exceed 500 calories ⁽¹⁾
• Entrée items shall not exceed 600 milligrams of sodium. (The standard will be reduced to a recommended 480 milligrams when there are more entrees available that meet the standard)
• No more than 35% calories from fat ⁽²⁾
• No more than 10% calories from saturated fat ⁽²⁾
• No trans fat ⁽³⁾
• No more than 35% of calories from total sugars and a maximum of no more than 15 grams of total sugar in the item ⁽²⁾

Additional Criteria

At least 1 item in all snack vending machines must meet the FDA definition of "low sodium" (less than 140 mg of sodium per serving for a snack). The lower sodium item should be identified on a label or sign visible from the vending machine window.

At least 1 item in all snack vending machine should contain at least 5 grams of dietary fiber per serving. The higher fiber item should be identified on a label or sign visible from the vending machine window.

Vending machine promotional advertisements shall only promote items that meet the nutritional standards outlined above.