Address Child Hunger Through Free School Meals for All

This brief is part of “Election 2024: Policy Playbook,” a series by Rice University and the Baker Institute that offers critical context, analysis, and recommendations to inform policymaking in the United States and Texas.

The Big Picture

• Food insecurity is a key determinant of children’s success at school and directly affects their development and opportunities later in life. 
• Universal free school breakfast and lunch policies are one of the simplest and most effective ways to set every child up for success in their education and health.
• Making school meals universally free across the U.S. would cost only a small fraction of the federal budget and would lead to long-term governmental savings.
• Universal provision of free school meals is a widely popular and proven intervention that is gathering bipartisan support and comes with clear, measurable outcomes.

Summarizing the Issue

In 2023, 17.3% of U.S. households with children were food insecure, or unable to afford the nutritious food needed for an active and healthy lifestyle. Due to social and economic inequalities, Black, Indigenous, and Latino communities showed higher rates of food insecurity. Additionally, children who face food insecurity are more likely to experience the following: 

• Poor school attendance.
• Worse developmental trajectories.
• Memory and cognition challenges. 
• Difficulty paying attention at school. 
• Diminished performance in their school subjects. 

These disadvantages compound over time, meaning that children from food insecure homes face worse prospects later in life in comparison to those who do not experience food insecurity.

In the context of rising child poverty, policymakers have rolled out universal free school meals programs at public schools across the country in states including California, Maine, Minnesota, New Mexico, Colorado, Vermont, and Michigan. Because the meals offered are universally available, even children who are not usually eligible for income-based assistance receive support. Proponents of universal free school meals highlight these programs as a simple, efficient, and effective way to address the hunger and nutrition gap that is currently undermining student success nationwide.

Other countries are leading the way in addressing the food security gap, with India, Estonia, Finland, Brazil, Wales, and Scotland introducing a variety of plans that ensure school-age children have access to good quality, nutritious meals. With evidence of the approach’s benefits building, the U.S. risks falling behind if it fails to implement these programs more broadly.

Expert Analysis

As food insecurity researchers, we have focused on the experiences of families in a historically underserved, low-income Black community in Houston, Texas. Through our work, we found that no matter how hard families work to piece together formal and informal supports, food security remains an intergenerational challenge for marginalized communities. This situation can only be remedied by concerted and decisive government action to better distribute resources in a way that does not create additional challenges for hard-working families. Stigma and fear of surveillance also hold many families back from seeking food assistance, and universal provision of free school meals can help to mitigate this. 

Universal Provision Generates Significant Benefits 

Introducing universal free meals improves student performance across a range of academic and behavioral outcomes. Extensive research by social scientists and nutritionists concludes that this universal provision improves attendance, academic performance, and overall health. Research also shows that public school systems that have implemented free meals programs have even seen reduced suspension rates. 

In fact, studies on universal free school meals illustrate that the benefits reach not just children but their families too, by helping to reduce the economic strain on food insecure households’ grocery expenses by up to 19%. Research also demonstrates that universal free school meals programs cut down on red tape and paperwork for schools and parents while decreasing the stigma of receiving government assistance. Finally, expert analysis indicates that expanding universal free school meals not only aids at-risk children but also helps to tackle root causes of health and educational inequity.

Evaluating the Costs

How much would universal provision of free school meals cost the U.S.? 

Current estimates are about $30 billion annually, up from the $19 billion now being spent on free school meals. Making breakfast and lunches universally free, however, will save administrative costs that now go toward assessing which children are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. Harder to quantify, but most important, are the long-term savings for taxpayers that would result from drastically reducing hunger in U.S. public schools. 

Policy Actions

We recommend policymakers support: 

• Universal free school breakfasts and lunches for all U.S. public school children. 
• Additional Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) benefits in the summer months to make up for the loss of school-based options during extended vacations.
• Initiatives that mirror existing successful universal school meals programs, such as the Free School Meals for Kids law enacted by Minnesota in 2023.
• The need to provide all students with sufficient nutritious food not only to make school fairer but also to lay the groundwork for good health nationwide.

The Bottom Line

By advocating for and instituting universal free school meals, policymakers can ensure that every American child gets the nutrition they need to succeed at school and beyond. 

This material may be quoted or reproduced without prior permission, provided appropriate credit is given to the author and Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy. The views expressed herein are those of the individual author(s), and do not necessarily represent the views of Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy.