Smart Meal Program

The Smart Meal Program is a pilot project that establishes nutrition requirements specifically designed for restaurant meals (including delis). By giving certain menu items the Smart Meal™ Seal, restaurants showcase entrees that are lower in fat, calories, and sodium and include components such as grains, fruits, and vegetables. Promotional materials that educate consumers about what the Smart Meal Seal signifies when seen are distributed at participating restaurants. The program is designed to educate consumers about what ingredients are in restaurant meals so consumers are better informed and have the capacity to make healthy decisions. Sonoma county is focused on this issue because the majority of premature deaths in the county are from chronic diseases, including cancer, heart disease and diabetes; the risk of developing these disease can be reduced through lifestyle modification, including, improving nutrition.

In order for an adult meal to meet the nutrition requirements and gain the Smart Meal Seal, it must: contain servings or more of beans, whole grains, fruits or vegetables; one of these servings may be substituted for a serving of fat-free or low-fat milk or equivalent milk product; be 700 calories or less; have 30 percent or less of total calories from fat or 23 grams or less of total fat; have 10 percent or less of calories from saturated fat or 8 grams or less of saturated fat; 0.5 grams or less of trans fat (no added or artificial trans fat); contain 1,500 mg or less of sodium. These requirements represent one-third of the recommended daily allowances (RDA). For kids’ meals, the requirements are reduced in accordance with RDA for kids 4-8 and 9-13.

Smart Meal was developed by the Colorado Physical Activity and Nutrition program and was adopted in 2009 by the Community Activity and Nutrition Coalition of Sonoma County and is endorsed by Health Action.

To promote optimal nutritional and physical health for Sonoma County residents, especially children, by increasing the capacity of residents to make informed and healthy food choices.

A pilot project is currently being implemented in the Kawana Springs/South Park and Roseland neighborhoods in south Santa Rosa.