Student nutrition continues to be a major priority for district leaders. More than a quarter of public schools are providing free meals through state or local initiatives, new federal data suggests.
Prioritizing nutrition and wellbeing
Twenty-nine percent of all public schools are giving students free breakfast and lunch this school year, which is a sizable increase from 21% in October 2022, according to the National Center for Education Statistics’ latest School Pulse Panel, which surveys public schools on a range of issues.
Across the board, 91% of public schools participate in United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) meal programs, compared to 88% in the 2022-23 school year. Among the schools providing meals, 67% collected household applications for free- or reduced-price meals, though 55% of these schools (39% of all schools) said parent reluctance to submit applications is a hurdle.
Another challenge is food service staff shortages (38%).
“Our data illustrate how partnerships across local, state and federal levels are playing a key role in providing students access to nutrition in schools,” NCES Commissioner Peggy Carr said in a statement.
How operational challenges impact nutrition
Many child nutrition programs are administered by local School Food Authorities (SFAs), entities composed of one or more schools that receive reimbursements to serve meals that meet federal requirements. In some areas, SFAs are seeing greater operational challenges.
For instance, SFAs in suburban areas have reported more workforce challenges as of the 2023-24 school year. Suburban SFAs more frequently report labor shortages and higher labor costs, as well as higher levels of staff stress and difficulty retaining staff, according to a survey administered by the USDA in December.
Some of the primary drivers of increased labor costs include wage increases, staff turnover and training, the data suggests.
“Outside businesses and us are competing for the same employees,” an employee of a large, rural SFA said in the survey. “Many of them pay ‘better’ and we try and keep up but sometimes we can’t. We need to pay better those who take care of our students/kids/future vs. any other food service employer. Our students deserve the best.”
In response to reported supply chain challenges, 21% of SFAs are increasing purchases of local foods. In fact, SDAs with less than 35% of students certified for free or reduced-price lunch and SFAs in states offering Healthy School Meals for All were more likely to report increasing the purchase of local foods.
Among those that increased their purchasing of local foods, more SFAs said that grants, policies and programs played a role in their decision in the 2023-24 school year. More than half of SFAs said that receiving a grant or other funding led to an increase in their purchase of local foods.
“Inflation and supply chain issues are the major factors to increases in food costs,” said an employee of a small, rural SFA. “Our school is very thankful for all the help the USDA is giving us through the grants.”
To learn more about how supply chain disruptions and student participation is impacting nutrition programs, click here.
