What does it mean to be a breakfast trailblazer?

Nationwide, school districts are leading the way in reducing added sugars in their breakfast offerings. Cutting back on added sugars in cereal, yogurt, flavored milk and grain-based desserts are examples from awardees of the Breakfast Trailblazer and the Small and/or Rural School Food Authority (SFA) Breakfast Trailblazer Award. These awards are part of USDA and Action for Healthy Kids (AFHK) Healthy Meals Incentives (HMI) Recognition Awards.

If awarded, your SFA receives the following benefits:

• Complimentary registration and travel stipend to attend the Fall 2025 Healthy Meals Summit
• Recognition on AFHK and HMI websites
• National and local recognition
• Opportunity to network with other HMI awardees
• Awardee toolkit with promotional resources

Along the way, breakfast trailblazers have learned some lessons on their journey to reducing added sugars at breakfast.

Hear from these breakfast trailblazers:

Lesson #1: Students might surprise you
When Thorton Fractional HSD 215 in Lansing, IL decided to remove flavored milk from their breakfast, they expected students to complain or refuse other milk options. But to their surprise, students barely noticed this change and participation numbers stayed the same! For the staff at Newman-Crows Landing Unified School District in Newman, CA, hiring a baker to prepare scratch-made recipes was greeted with some skepticism that quickly went away once students smelled the freshly baked items reminiscent of grandma’s kitchen.

Lesson #2: Think savory instead of sweet
Switching from grain-based desserts to savory, protein-rich breakfast options can offer a wider variety of choices at breakfast, as the staff at Lebanon School District in Lebanon, PA found out. They swapped grain-based desserts for savory options like breakfast pizza, egg and cheese on a whole grain biscuit and breakfast casserole to name a few.  Thorton Fractional HSD 215 included new savory options of breakfast quesadillas, baked chilaquiles and diced potato breakfast bowls. Recipe testing at North Crawford School District in Soldier Grove, WI, revealed students preferred scratch-prepared savory breakfast options such as breakfast taco bar, country breakfast bowls, breakfast “tot-chos” freshly baked biscuits, and ham and cheese muffins.

Lesson #3: Small changes over time add up
Director Carlee Johnson McIntosh at Petersburg School District in Petersburg, AK gradually changed out the district’s yogurt and cereal for options with less added sugars. As a result, she found students were more willing to accept small changes compared with several changes at once. Small changes over time have a big impact on students’ overall health.

Lesson#4: Lean on others for support
Child Nutrition Program Supervisor April Kurtz at Central Community School District in Baton Rouge, LA knew finding cereals lower in added sugars would take time. Thankfully, her cereal supplier quickly provided a list of cereals lower in added sugars, saving her time and effort. When Hollandale School District in Hollandale, MS considered switching from juice to fresh fruit at breakfast, they first spoke with local produce suppliers to ensure they would receive high quality fresh fruit. After they made the switch, 70% of students surveyed said they preferred fresh fruit over fruit juice.

 For more information on the Recognition Awards and to learn how to apply, visit the Healthy Meals Incentives Recognition Awards website. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis through June 30, 2025. Need help getting started? Reach out to AFHK at awards@healthymealsincentives.org for help!

Check out our Cafeteria Chronicles Blog for more inspiring school nutrition transformations! Stay tuned for more Cafeteria Chronicles stories from school districts nationwide.