Section 14(b)(2) of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (7 USC 1762a(b)(2)) requires USDA to make nutrition, allergen, and ingredient information available for USDA Foods products for the National School Lunch Program (NSLP). Through this initiative, FNS will leverage an existing partnership with the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) Branded Foods Database to use the GS1 Global Data Synchronization Network ^TM (GS1 GDSN) to provide vendor-specific nutrition information to states and school districts. This information will help to inform menu planning decisions and assist school districts in developing menus that are compliant with federal requirements for school meals.

USDA Foods vendors will be required to submit nutrition, allergen, and ingredient information in GS1 GDSN by Dec. 31, 2021 for the material codes listed in the spreadsheet: List of Materials Required for GS1 GDSN. All bulk for processing material codes and fresh produce material codes are exempt from the requirement.

The USDA Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) Commodity Procurement Program has published a series of resources to provide an overview of requirements for the GS1 Global Data Synchronization Network (GDSN) initiative for the USDA Foods Program.