Schools worry about cost of providing healthy meals for kids
- A pandemic-era, universal free lunch program ended in 2022
- Schools are concerned about the cost of providing kids with healthy meals
- There are also worries new nutrition guidelines will hurt lunch programs
STAMFORD, CONNECTICUT – SEPTEMBER 08: A student prepares lunch in the cafeteria during the first day of school at Stamford High School on September 08, 2020 in Stamford, Connecticut. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, many school districts nationwide delayed the first day of school until after the Labor Day weekend. Stamford Public Schools started the semester with a hybrid model, which includes in-class learning every other day. Many families, however, chose the distance learning option due to fears of COVID-19 transmission between students. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)
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(NewsNation) — Schools across the country are worried about providing nutritious meals to kids amid declining participation in school lunch programs and changing nutrition standards.
A survey conducted by Edge Research and K-12 solutions provider LINQ asked nutrition professionals in K-12 schools how they felt about their ability to provide kids with the nutrition needed to focus and perform well in the classroom.
While the majority, 79%, expressed confidence in their ability to provide healthy meals, there were concerns about changing federal guidelines for sodium and added sugar, including fears families would be less likely to participate in the program.
New guidelines from the United States Department of Agriculture would ban flavored milk in elementary and middle schools, something 73% of survey respondents feared would discourage participation in school lunch programs.
The culprit in flavored milk is added sugar, which the USDA seeks to reduce to help fight obesity. Other limits would reduce sodium and increase the use of whole grains. Previous efforts to make school lunches healthier have faced backlash as parents and kids resist changes to favorites like pizza and fried chicken.
The quality of meals wasn’t the only concern among school professionals. More than half of those surveyed worried about the costs of meals. There were also concerns about managing applications for meal programs and dealing with lunch debt.
A pandemic-era program provided free meals to all students, but those expired by the fall of 2022, meaning families who need assistance must go through an application process to qualify. While some states have moved to provide universal free meals, the majority have not.
Lunch debt is also a serious problem in the U.S., with some schools picking up the cost of feeding students while others have resorted to providing alternate meals for kids who can’t afford a hot lunch or engaging in shaming tactics to encourage parents to pay.
The survey also found schools had concerns about staffing shortages impacting the ability of schools to plan and distribute meals, especially in smaller districts without automated technology to help.
