Preliminary data shows schools are serving fewer meals than they did last year, largely due to the end of nationwide pandemic-era waivers which allowed schools to serve meals at no cost to all children. According to a recent report, Kentucky saw a 34% increase in lunch participation and a nearly 3% increase in the number of kids who ate breakfast at school over the past few years. Clarissa Hayes, Deputy Director for School and Out-of-School Time Programs at the Food Research & Action Center, said the gap between Kentucky kids receiving breakfast and lunch now appears to be widening as kids and families go back to the tiered eligibility system used to determine who qualifies for free school meals. .
Red tape and other hurdles are getting in the way, especially for those children who aren t getting nutritious meals at home, the people in charge of keeping kids fed in Kentucky schools said. Leah Feagin, Nutrition Director at Mayfield Independent Schools, said administrative burdens and differing guidelines for federal programs have left her with mounds of paperwork, including having to provide attendance rosters in order to feed kids after-school snacks and supper, which she says is time-consuming. "Why are we having to jump through all these hoops when, if I m doing this for breakfast and lunch, I m obviously going to do this for snack and supper? I m not going to do it a different way," Feagin said. " .
Students in the Orlando area could soon get more classroom time during their lunchtime, to learn more about ways to fight hunger and food waste. It is estimated 40% of the food produced globally is lost or wasted. The "Food Waste Warrior" program of the World Wildlife Fund inspires children to help alleviate local and global food insecurity. .
As families struggle with inflation and high gas prices, Ohio schools said they are seeing a staggering rise in the number of students whose parents cannot afford to pay for lunch, but who do not qualify for free or reduced-price meals. Lindy Douglas, coordinator of whole child and wellness programs for Alexander Local Schools in Athens County, said school lunch debt has more than doubled this year from pre-pandemic levels. She pointed out cafeteria workers are being forced to deny children food because they owed charges. .