Lunch is a meal that allows everyone to get through the rest of their day. Staying fueled and refreshed is especially important for elementary, middle, and high school students. But in U.S. public schools, lunch is often an afterthought when it comes to funding educational spaces. Lunchtime should be a sacred part of a student’s day with a meal they are guaranteed to enjoy; sadly, this isn’t the case.
According to a study conducted by the School Nutrition Association, “Economic, procurement, and regulatory issues have become critical long-term challenges for school meal programs as pandemic-era assistance comes to an end.” The study also found that students eat their healthiest meals at school.
Millions of families need more reliable school meals so that their kids can eat without placing a heavy financial burden on themselves. The fact that these meals are free or very cheap in price shouldn’t affect their quality.
The National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program are reimbursement programs, meaning that the program sponsor pays for all of the meals first and then requests to be reimbursed for the cost of all the meals. The United States Department of Agriculture then reimburses at rates depending on the student bodies’ socio-economic status, which is based on how many students qualify for free or reduced lunch. The government gives the program sponsor more money for schools with a higher population of students who qualify for free or reduced lunch, and less for those with a higher population of students who are able to pay full price.
According to federal reimbursement rates for July 1, 2025 to June 30, 2026, a school with more than 60% of students qualifying for free or reduced lunch will be reimbursed $4.62 per free meal served, $4.22 per reduced meal served, and $4.60 per paid meal served. At a school with less than 60% of students qualifying for free and reduced lunch the school will be reimbursed $4.60 per free meal served, $4.20 per reduced meal served, and $4.00 per paid meal served. Although schools can work with other programs to provide meals at a lower cost or completely free, the reimbursements are often extremely similar to or lower than these numbers.
This reimbursement plan is good in theory, but these rates don’t comply with rising food, supply, and labor costs that affect all parts of the service industry. The U.S has enough federal funds to provide more funding for school lunches but the way lawmakers distribute these funds blocks this possibility.
According to the Healthy Schools Campaign, “French schools spend more money per child – nearly three times as much – to pay for higher quality meals, with costs shared by parents and local governments.” The U.S is widely considered a global superpower, and it is clear that our government has the capacity to provide more nutritious school lunches for American students.
One reason the U.S. government should invest more in school lunches is the fact that obesity rates are increasing at an alarming rate among American children. According to the State of Childhood Obesity “Roughly one in six youth have obesity, according to the newest available data. The data, from the National Survey of Children’s Health, show that in 2023-2024, 16.1% of youth ages 6 to 17 had obesity.” School lunches can contribute to these rates if schools don’t receive enough funding to provide nutritious, healthy meals that kids actually want to eat. According to “Based on these school administrator reports, approximately 61 percent of the children had junk food availability in school.” These types of rates are rising, but if school lunches receive more funding and then in turn lunches become more nutritious, these rates could lower.
Real change starts with students. If you believe that school lunches need more funding, don’t complain about it to the people at your lunch table; talk to local, state, and federal lawmakers. Lunch can be the best part of a student’s day, but it would be better if priority is finally given to this sacred part of the school day.
