Better health and educational outcomes are being touted as the potential benefits as Minnesota lawmakers discuss whether to provide free school meals for all students.

Supporters of the idea said it is especially critical now, to ensure all kids can get free breakfast and lunch at school, regardless of income. A legislative plan calls for state funding to be combined with annual aid from the long-standing National School Lunch Program.

Leah Gardner, policy director for Hunger Solutions Minnesota, said the state is coming off a record year for visits to food shelves. She argued more can be done to help struggling families who are barely above the current eligibility threshold for free school meals.

"If you're a family with multiple kids in school, we're talking about a hundred dollars or more a month out of your budget," Gardner pointed out.

She noted amid higher consumer costs, it has become increasingly difficult to afford, and the need is being felt in all regions of Minnesota.

Health experts have said consistent, balanced meals help students focus and stay healthy. The bill is being proposed by Democrats. During committee debate, Republicans said expanding the eligibility threshold would be more effective, but an amendment failed.

Dr. Aarti Bhatt, a pediatrician at Community-University Health Care Center in Minneapolis, said food insecurity is considered by researchers as one of the Adverse Childhood Experiences, or ACES, for its lasting impacts.

"We know that what happens to kids when they're young, up through adulthood, has a huge impact on development of various chronic diseases," Bhatt explained.

She added other factors include high blood pressure, diabetes, depression and anxiety.

Bukata Hayes, vice president of racial equity for Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota, said free school meals tie into the social determinants of health, noting 80% of a person's health is shaped by factors outside a doctor's office.

Hayes asserted making sure all kids can get food at school is one way to help close achievement gaps in learning, knowing there are other racial disparities to contend with.

"Housing, wealth and other areas," Hayes outlined. "Removing one of those, particularly for children of color in schools, is important."

The bill has moved through various committees. Roughly $400 million would be needed the next two budget years to cover the costs. It comes as the state considers how to use its historic surplus.

With school cafeterias closed for the summer, community groups and nonprofits are working to ensure that Colorado's one in five children who go without food because their family can't afford groceries can still get nutritious meals.

Kristen Collins, executive director of Colorado Food Cluster, said because rural families have longer distances to travel for in-person summer meal sites, her group is now delivering boxes of food directly to homes.

"The box includes seven days worth of breakfast, and seven days worth of lunch," she explained. "All of those meals are shelf-stable, so you'll get tuna packets, chicken salad packets, Goldfish, juices."

Collins said she expects to serve meals to 1,800 low income kids across 20 rural counties this year. Last year, Congress exempted rural areas from rules that require summer meals to be eaten at a specific site, and there are now "to go" options available outside metro areas as well.

To find a summer meal, visit KidsFoodFinder.org, or text the word "Food" or "Comida" to 304-304.

Participating community recreation centers, libraries, churches and other sites across the state are also serving free breakfast, lunch, snacks and supper to Colorado youths all summer long.

Justice Onwordi, impact director with Colorado Blueprint to End Hunger, said anyone 18 and younger can share a meal with friends.

"You don't have to be enrolled in any school, you don't have to be enrolled in any type of federal or state programs. It's for anyone and everyone, and you don't even need a proof of ID or anything like that. You can just show up to a site," said Onwordi.

All locations are required to meet federal nutrition guidelines. Many offer fun activities for kids and teens designed to exercise both minds and bodies, to help make sure kids are healthy and ready to learn when they head back to school in the fall.

One proposed version of the next Farm Bill, introduced by the Republican chair of the House Agriculture Committee, would cut the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program by $30 billion over the next decade.

A competing Senate version introduced by the Democratic agriculture committee chair would keep benefits intact.

Carmen Mooradian, senior public policy manager for Hunger Free Colorado, said access to the program is not a partisan issue and it affects rural and urban families.

"SNAP is one of the most effective federal programs that exists to combat food insecurity and poverty," Mooradian asserted. "It's something that is used by Americans throughout this country to weather life's storms."

The House version removes a provision added to the 2018 Farm Bill which allowed benefits to be calculated in a way to consider the most current nutrition science and actual retail food prices. According to the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities, removing the provision would cut benefits in Colorado by $380 million.

Cutting food benefits may save money in a fiscal year but Mooradian argued it will cost taxpayers far more down the road in health care and other costs associated with poor nutrition. She added the program also contributes billions to state and local economies.

"Every SNAP dollar is returned into the economy," Mooradian pointed out. "It turns into profits for local businesses, for agricultural producers. When we stop investing in SNAP, those communities miss out."

Lawmakers extended the existing Farm Bill last year after failing to agree on a new version. The extension expires at the end of September, weeks before the General Election. Mooradian added there is still time for constituents to tell their representatives in Congress what they think.

"This is the opportunity for the community to really weigh in about the two proposals that are on the table," Mooradian urged. "And the impact that they will have on households if they pass."

The latest Maryland School Breakfast Report finds tens of thousands fewer kids are being served post COVID.

The end of pandemic era waivers two years ago saw schools revert to tiered systems of free or reduced-price meals based on household income. In turn, despite a slightly larger student population, the 2022-23 school year saw the average number of breakfasts served in a day fall by nearly 39,000, and saw 65,000 fewer lunches served, compared with 2020-21.

LaMonika Jones, interim director of Maryland Hunger Solutions, said reducing the reach of school meals, especially breakfast, takes a toll in the classroom.

"It's challenging for a student at any age to sit in the classroom and focus on what the teacher is trying to share when they're hungry. I understand the argument that it takes away from instruction, but the distraction of being hungry also takes away from instructional time," Jones explained.

The report shows the total number of breakfasts served in the state overall fell by more than 6.5 million in 2022 versus the year prior.

The report identifies barriers to school breakfast participation, including cost, time and the stigma associated with being on a free meal program.

Schools with at least 40% of students qualifying for free or reduced-price meals can opt-in to the state-funded Maryland Meals for Achievement program, which offers free breakfast to all students. While traditional school breakfasts are served in the cafeteria before class, Jones says MMFA is an alternative breakfast model that offers greater flexibility.

"Our students are able to either have 'grab and go' style, which works really well for our older students, or for our little ones, we're able to have breakfast in the classroom. And having those alternative models in place, as well as the funding to cover the cost of these alternative models, ensures that we're meeting that need," she continued.

This past year saw 588 schools participate in MMFA, up from 485 in 2019.


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