Reach of Dietary Guidelines for Americans: CSPI policy scan results

Background

The Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA) are intended to provide “science-based advice on what to eat and drink to promote health, help reduce risk of chronic disease, and meet nutrient needs.” The DGA is published every five years by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) based on a legal requirement in the National Nutrition Monitoring and Related Research Act of 1990 (NNMRRA):  

In other words, all federal nutrition programs are required to “promote” the DGA, making the DGA one of the greatest levers impacting nutrition and health in the U.S. But what does this look like in practice? Which programs are actually fulfilling their legal requirement to align with the DGA?  

We conducted a policy scan to understand the DGA’s reach: the public policies that operationalize the DGA and which federal agencies are following the DGA in their internal food programs We used the following search strategies: 

• Public Policies: Searched “Dietary Guidelines for Americans,” “7 U.S.C. 5341,” “7 U.S.C. 5341(a),” “Section 5341,” “Section 5341(a),” “§ 5341,” and “§ 5341(a)” in United States Code, Code of Federal Regulations, and Federal Register (narrowed for proposed and final rulemakings and to avoid non-substantive mentions of DGA)
• Internal agency policies: Searched “Dietary Guidelines for Americans” and “DGA” on agency/subagency websites and used Google Site search to catch materials/references not surfacing in agency website search tool (ex. site:nih.gov Dietary Guidelines for Americans). 

One coder conducted the public policy search, and another coder conducted the internal agency policy search; each coded search results that mentioned the DGA. After searching, each coder analyzed their results for relevant policies missed by the search protocol that they were aware of through prior knowledge and added these policies to the search results. The two coders then compared results to eliminate reduncancy.  

The following is a summary of our results.

Reach of the DGA  

Public policies (statutes or regulations) 

• 8 federal nutrition programs are aligned with the DGA in statute or regulations  (note that although the NNMRRA requires federal programs to comply, we found that some statutes and regulations give program administrators flexibility regarding DGA compliance or only suggest DGA compliance; these instances are labeled “voluntary alignment”):
  • HHS
    • Administration for Children and Families
      • Meals for Unaccompanied Alien Children
        • 45 C.F.R. § 410.1302: “(c)(1) Provide or arrange for the following services for each unaccompanied child in care:...food that is of adequate variety, quality, and in sufficient quantity to supply the nutrients needed for proper growth and development, which can be accomplished by following the USDA Dietary Guidelines for Americans...”  (voluntary alignment)
    • Administration for Community Living
      • Senior Nutrition Program
        • 45 C.F.R. § 1321.87: “(a) Nutrition services include congregate meals, home-delivered meals, nutrition education, nutrition counseling, and other nutrition services...(1) Congregate meals are meals meeting the Dietary Guidelines for Americans... (2) Home-delivered meals are meals meeting the Dietary Guidelines for Americans...”
      • State and community grants under the Older Americans Act
        • 42 U.S.C. § 3030g-21: “A State that establishes and operates a nutrition project under this chapter shall—...(2) ensure that the project— (A) provides meals that—(i) comply with the most recent Dietary Guidelines for Americans...”
  • USDA
    • Agricultural Marketing Service
      • Section 32 Purchases
        • 7 U.S.C. § 612c note: “Sec. 3. (a)(1) In developing specifications for commodities acquired through price support, surplus removal, and direct purchase programs of the Department of Agriculture that are donated for use for programs or institutions described in paragraph (2), the Secretary shall—...(C) give significant weight to the recommendations of the advisory council established under paragraph (3) in ensuring that commodities and products are—(ii) to the maximum extent practicable, consistent with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans....”
    • Food and Nutrition Service
      • Child and Adult Care Food Program
        • 42 U.S.C. § 1766: “(g)(2)(B)(i) Not less frequently than once every 10 years, the Secretary shall review and, as appropriate, update requirements for meals served under the program under this section to ensure that the meals—(I) are consistent with the goals of the most recent Dietary Guidelines...”
      • Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations
        • 7 C.F.R § 253.3: “(d)…FNS shall periodically assess how the USDA Foods provided in the Food Distribution Program compares to the Dietary Guidelines for Americans and the market baskets of the Thrifty Food Plan and, to the extent practicable, will adjust the food package as need to ensure that the food package benefits is in alignment.”
      • National School Lunch Program
        • 42 U.S.C. § 1779: “(b)(1)(C) In establishing nutrition standards under the paragraph, the Secretary shall—(i) establish standards that are consistent with the most recent Dietary Guidelines for Americans...including the food groups to encourage and nutrients of concern identified in the Dietary Guidelines....; (D) As soon as practicable after the date of publication...of a new edition of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans...the Secretary shall review and update as necessary the school nutrition standards and requirements established under this subsection.”
        • 42 U.S.C. § 1758: “(a)(2)(A) In general.— Lunches served by schools participating in the school lunch program...(i) shall offer students a variety of fluid milk. Such milk shall be consistent with the most recent Dietary Guidelines for Americans....”
      • Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) retailer eligibility criteria is based in part on the DGA
        • 81 Fed. Reg. 90675: “Primarily this provision will expand the definition of “accessory food items” to include snack and dessert foods, as well as specified food items that complement or supplement meals. These foods are typically deficient in important nutrients and are high in sodium, saturated fats, and/or sugar. FNS believes that this approach to excluding typically salty and sugary snack and dessert foods from counting towards retailer eligibility is a logical extension of the statute and is consistent with the USDA 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans...”
      • Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC)
        • 89 Fed. Reg. 28488: “This final rule...revises regulations to align the WIC food packages with the current Dietary Guidelines for Americans...”
      • Thrifty Food Plan
        • 7 U.S.C. § 2012(u)(4)(A): “Not earlier than October 1, 2027, the Secretary may re-evaluate the market baskets of the thrifty food plan based on current food prices, food composition data, consumption patterns, and dietary guidance.” (While not explicit in this statutory language, FNS’s website makes clear that “dietary guidance” refers to the DGA.)
  • 5 federal education and research programs are aligned with the DGA in statute or regulations:
    • USDA is authorized to study selection and consumption of healthful foods that are consistent with the current DGA:
      • 7 U.S.C. § 3179: “(a) The Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of Health and Human Services, shall establish a research, demonstration, and technical assistance program to promote healthy eating and reduce the prevalence of obesity, among all population groups but especially among children, by applying the principles and insights of behavioral economics research in schools, child care programs, and other settings. (b) The Secretary shall—(1) identity and assess the impacts of specific presentation, placement, and other strategies for structuring choices on selection and consumption of healthful foods in a variety of settings, consistent with the most recent version of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans....”
    • SNAP-Ed
      • 7 U.S.C. § 2036a: “(b) Consistent with the terms and conditions of grants awarded under this section, State agencies may implement a nutrition education and obesity prevention program for eligible individuals that promotes healthy food choices and physical activity consistent with the most recent Dietary Guidelines for Americans....” (The July 2025 One Big Beautiful Bill Act defunded the SNAP-Ed program, effective at the end of fiscal year 2025. One Big Beautiful Bill Act, H.R. 1, 119th Cong. § 10107 (2025).)
    • Administration on Aging Assistant Secretary may disseminate information aligned with the DGA
      • 42 U.S.C. § 3016: “(a)(2)(A) The Assistant Secretary shall designate an officer or employee who...shall have duties that include—...(iii) conducting outreach and disseminating evidence-based information to nutrition service providers about the benefits of healthful diets and regular physical activity, including information about the most current Dietary Guidelines for Americans...”
    • USDA Team Nutrition disseminates information aligned with the DGA
      • 42 U.S.C. § 1788: “(a) The purposes of the team nutrition network are— (1) to establish State systems to promote the nutrition health of school children of the United States through nutrition education and use of team nutrition messages and material developed by the Secretary, and to encourage regular physical activity and other activities that support healthy lifestyles for children, including those based on the most recent Dietary Guidelines for Americans...”
    • Senior Farmer’s Market Nutrition Program nutrition education includes provision of materials in keeping with the DGA
      • 7 C.F.R. § 249.2: “Nutrition education means:...(2) The provision of relevant materials, in keeping with the individual’s personal, cultural, and socioeconomic preferences and the Dietary Guidelines for Americans...”
• 13 other federal policies were informed by the DGA
  • The DGA provides the basis for 10 FDA-regulated health claims that food manufacturers can make regarding their products, including the “healthy” label claim
    • 21 C.F.R. § 101.73: Health claims: dietary lipids and cancer.
    • 21 C.F.R. § 101.74: Health claims: sodium and hypertension.
    • 21 C.F.R. § 101.75: Health claims: dietary saturated fat and cholesterol and risk of coronary heart disease.
    • 21 C.F.R. § 101.76: Health claims: fiber-containing grain products, fruits, and vegetables and cancer.
    • 21 C.F.R. § 101.77: Health claims: fruits, vegetables, and grain products that contain fiber, particularly soluble fiber, and risk of coronary heart disease.
    • 21 C.F.R. § 101.78: Health claims: fruits and vegetables and cancer.
    • 21 C.F.R. § 101.81: Health claims: soluble fiber from certain foods and risk of coronary heart disease (CHD).
    • 21 C.F.R. § 101.82: Health claims: soy protein and risk of coronary heart disease (CHD).
    • 21 C.F.R. § 101.83: Health claims: plant sterol/stanol esters and risk of coronary heart disease (CHD).
    • 89 Fed. Reg. 106064: Food Labeling: Nutrient Content Claims; Definition of Term “Healthy”
  • Department of Labor may provide employers of temporary H-2A visa agricultural workers (who must provide three meals a day or access to cooking facilities) with meal guidelines, including the DGA
    • 87 Fed. Reg. 61660: “The Department has declined to adopt any particular standard for nutritional balance and caloric sufficiency at this time but encourages employers to consult the USDA, National Institutes of Health, or other credible sources of nutrition and caloric intake guidelines. In addition, the Department believes that providing employers with examples of established guidelines for ensuring that meals are calorically and nutritionally adequate will offer employers greater certainty when developing meal plans that such plans comply with the requirements of § 655.122(g).” (voluntary alignment)
  • FNS’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) retailer eligibility criteria is based in part on the DGA
    • 81 Fed. Reg. 90675: “Primarily this provision will expand the definition of “accessory food items” to include snack and dessert foods, as well as specified food items that complement or supplement meals. These foods are typically deficient in important nutrients and are high in sodium, saturated fats, and/or sugar. FNS believes that this approach to excluding typically salty and sugary snack and dessert foods from counting towards retailer eligibility is a logical extension of the statute and is consistent with the USDA 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans...”
  • FDA’s requirement to include trans fat on the nutrition facts label was based in part on the DGA
    • 68 Fed. Reg. 41434: “...the conclusions in...the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2000...[had] recommendations to limit trans fat intake in the diet.”
  • FDA used the 2015 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee (DGAC) report as the basis for establishing the Daily Reference Value for added sugars
    • 81 Fed. Reg. 33742: “The 2015 DGAC report further contributed to the scientific support for the added sugars declaration. For the first time, the 2015 DGAC conducted a systematic review of the relationship between dietary patterns and health outcomes. The DGAC found a strong association of a dietary pattern characterized, in part, by lower consumption of sugar-sweetened foods and beverages relative to a less healthy dietary pattern and reduced risk of CVD.”
• 2 recent proposed rulemakings were informed by the current DGA
  • 81 Fed. Reg. 83752: Proposed disclosure of pre-serving alcohol, calorie, and nutrient content info in "Alcohol Facts" statement on all alcohol beverage labels subject to TTB's authority under FAA Act (wines, distilled spirits, malt beverages). In the proposed rulemaking, TTB is seeking comment on whether DGA terms "drink" and "alcoholic drink equivalent" should be used or defined for use on "Alcohol Facts" labels, and on whether the proposed labels should include a summary of DGA advice on moderate drinking (to be updated based on any changes in the guidelines over time).
  • 90 Fed. Reg. 5426: Proposed front-of-package labeling for sodium, saturated fat, and added sugar content. The inclusion of sodium, saturated fat, and added sugars is based, in part, on the DGA's guidance to limit these nutrients.

Internal agency policies  

Fifteen department websites were searched and mentions of the DGA (being promoted in educational materials or used to guide food procurement or nutrition standards) were found on the websites or in materials for 5 departments: the Departments of the Interior, Agriculture, Defense, Health and Human Services, and Veterans Affairs. USDA and HHS are among the aligned departments that promote the DGA, but their compliance with the DGA is already covered above under “Public policies.” The following section provides examples of how the remaining aligned departments promote the DGA:  

Aligned Departments  

• Department of the Interior
  • Indian Affairs Bureau
    • The 2011 Bureau of Indian Education Health and Wellness Policy in the Indian Affairs Manual (Part 30, Chapter 7) provides guidance on policies and procedures for creating a healthier school environment and minimum standards for wellness at all schools funded by the Bureau of Indian Education. The manual states that “it is the policy of the BIE that all schools and residential facilities serving meals and snacks to students...B. Comply with the most recent Dietary Guidelines for Americans for all foods served or sold during mealtimes by the school (demonstrating adequate nutrient content without excessive caloric intake) by providing a variety of grains, especially whole grains, fruits, vegetables, and foods low in saturated fat, trans fat, cholesterol, sugars, and salt” and "School Principals... are responsible for... 9) Providing varied and nutritious food choices consistent with the applicable federal government Dietary Guidelines for Americans."  
  • National Park Service (NPS)
    • The NPS developed Healthy Food Standards in 2016 that align with the 2015-2020 DGA and apply to all front-country food service operations: “The NPS Healthy Food Choice Standards and Sustainable Food Choice Guidelines for Front Country Operations are designed to help the Service continue to build upon Call to Action Goal #8, Eat Well and Prosper. These standards and guidelines were developed using a number of existing sources including...the 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans...The Healthy Food Standards apply to new contracts effective in 2016. They may be applied for existing contracts if mutually agreed upon by the NPS and the concessioner.”
• Department of Defense (DOD)
  • The DOD aligns their food procurement and menu standards with the DGA.
    • The Army Buyers Guide provides guidance on procurement for the institutions feeding military service members, setting “a universal standard for products to be purchased and consumed by military service members under government funding.” The recommendations in the 2023 guide are partially driven by the 2020-2025 DGA.
    • Army Regulation 40-25, Nutrition and Menu Standards for Human Performance Optimization, “defines the nutritional responsibilities of the Surgeons General of the Army, the Navy, and the Air Force,” and is applicable to active Army, Army National Guard, Army Reserve,  the Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps, as well as “nonmilitary persons under military jurisdiction; selected Federal employees; selected employees of Department of Defense contractors; and Family members and other healthcare beneficiaries eligible for care within the military health care system.” The standards align menus and nutrition education with the current DGA:
      • “The Surgeons General of the Army, Navy, and Air Force will...2) Develop and implement programs in accordance with the current U.S. Dietary Guidelines for Americans...”
      • Nutrition standards for military feeding are adapted from the DGA
      • “To provide a consistent message, nutrition education will incorporate the ChooseMyPlate.gov Web site and the current Dietary Guidelines for Americans from the USDA and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.”
• Department of Veterans Affairs
  • The Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report in 2023, reviewing federal efforts to promote the DGA. While their report did not cover all federal agencies, they described actions that selected agencies, including the VA, have taken to promote the 2020-2025 DGA. The VA’s Healthy Diet policy is not publicly available, but the GAO report states that: “According to VA officials, VA’s Healthy Diet policy directs VA hospitals to follow the DGA, and VA incorporates DGA recommendations into its programs, including the MOVE! Weight Management Program; medical nutrition therapy counseling programs; and Healthy Teaching Kitchen Program, which teaches veterans how to cook and prepare healthy foods.” 

Other impacts 

Lastly, the DGA has reach beyond specific departments or policies. The NNMRRA also states that “any Federal agency that proposes to issue any dietary guidance for the general population or identified population subgroups shall submit the text of such guidance to the Secretaries” for review and the Secretaries will “assure that the guidance either is consistent with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans or that the guidance is based on medical or new scientific knowledge which is determined to be valid by the Secretaries.” Therefore, all federal nutrition education materials for the public are supposed to be consistent with the latest DGA, as reviewed by USDA and HHS.  

There are also voluntary standards that can be internally adopted across federal facilities: the Food Service Guidelines for Federal Facilities are voluntary guidelines that align with the DGA and aim to improve access to healthier foods at federal facilities and in any food service settings that choose to adopt them. 

• “The food and nutrition standards recommend that specific healthier foods and beverages be available for purchase. In alignment with the current Dietary Guidelines for Americans, the Food Service Guidelines for Federal Facilities includes food and nutrition standards that support offering: A variety of fruit and vegetable options (including seasonal), Whole grain-rich products, Plant-based proteins, Lean protein entrees, Lower sodium meals, entrees, and sides, and Freely available drinking water.”
• These guidelines have been adopted by some federal agencies. For example, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has an internal policy requiring compliance with the Food Service Guidelines: Updated in 2023, Policy CDC-AM-2018-01 states “The purpose of this policy is to ensure all new and renegotiated food service contracts and permits meet the standards outlined in the current Food Service Guidelines for Federal Facilities” in all CDC-owned and operated dining and vending facilities.