School meal programs in the United States

This article needs to be updated. The reason given is: Most of the papers referenced are over a decade old, and many are from before the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information. (June 2024)

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In the United States, school meals are provided either at no cost or at a government-subsidized price, to students from low-income families. These free or subsidized meals have the potential to increase household food security, which can improve children's health and expand their educational opportunities.^[1] A study of a free school meal program in the United States found that providing free meals to elementary and middle school children in areas characterized by high food insecurity led to increased school discipline among the students.^[2]

The biggest school meal program in the United States is the National School Lunch Program (NSLP), which was created under President Harry S. Truman in 1946.^[3] Its purpose is to prevent malnutrition and provide a foundation for good nutritional health. The text of the National School Lunch Act, which established the program, called it a "measure of national security, to safeguard the health and well-being of the nation's children and to encourage domestic consumption of nutritious agricultural commodities."^[4]

The NSLP currently operates in about 100,000 public schools, nonprofit private schools, and residential care institutions. In the fiscal year 2023, it served more than 4.6 billion lunches.^[5]