USDA’s school meal programs serve nutritious meals to nearly 30 million children every school day. These meals are an important source of nutrition for many children. You are invited to share these messages and resources about how school meals help empower children to grow, learn and thrive.
What's New This Year
Beginning this school year, schools have tastier, healthier options to:
- Serve protein-rich breakfast foods such as yogurt, tofu, eggs, nuts and seeds, which can help reduce sugary foods, while also supporting vegetarian diets and other food preferences.
- Buy local foods. Schools can require unprocessed agricultural products to be locally grown, raised or caught when making purchases for their meal programs. More information is available on the Procuring Local Foods webpage.
Things to Know
- Students who eat school breakfast and school lunch are more likely to consume milk, fruits, and vegetables, which support healthy growth.
- Research shows that lunches consumed at school are the most nutritious option available to children during the school week.
- Maximizing school attendance is key to children’s educational success. Healthy school meals help support that goal.
- Eight states have taken permanent actions to provide healthy school meals at no cost to all their students: California, Colorado, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico and Vermont. In other states, many schools in high-need areas provide free meals to all their students through the Community Eligibility Provision.
Next Steps in Strengthening School Meals
School meals will continue to be strengthened in upcoming years through gradual reductions to added sugars and sodium.
School Meals Success Stories
Get inspired by school districts across the nation who are serving up delicious and creative school meals!
Spotlight on Award-Winning Schools
USDA established the Healthy Meals Incentives Initiative to improve the nutritional quality of school meals. Learn more about schools that have been recognized by USDA for efforts to transform their meals.
Video Soundbites
Cindy Long, USDA Deputy Under Secretary for FNS answers the following questions about the National School Lunch Program:
- How can the National School Lunch Program teach kids healthy eating habits?
- What is the importance of school meals for kids?
- What do you want parents and caregivers to know about school meals?
B-Roll Video
Photos
Share the following photos in your back to school social media outreach. Multiple sizes are available for download if you click on each photo. You can also check out the Team Nutrition photo collection on Flickr.
Sample Social Media Content
Below you will find sample social media content that you can share on your social media channels to increase support for USDA’s Back to School initiatives. You can also follow us and repost our content on the following platforms:
- Twitter/X
- USDA's Community Eligibility Provision is a win for everyone. It provides free healthy meals for all students at participating schools. To learn more about CEP, visit: https://www.fns.usda.gov/schoolmeals #BacktoSchool #SchoolMeals #ChildNutrition #ChildHealth
- School meal programs provide healthy meals to about 30 million kids each day. That’s why [ORGANIZATION NAME] supports programs like USDA’s National School Lunch Program. Learn more: https://www.fns.usda.gov/schoolmeals #BacktoSchool #SchoolMeals #ChildNutrition #ChildHealth
- Maximizing school attendance is key to a child’s educational success. Learn more about how healthy school meals are helping children grow, learn and thrive at https://www.fns.usda.gov/schoolmeals. #BackToSchool #SchoolMeals #ChildHealth
- Did you know? Students who eat school meals are more likely to consume milk, fruits, and vegetables, which support healthy growth. Learn more about the importance of school meals at https://www.fns.usda.gov/schoolmeals. #BacktoSchool #SchoolMeals #ChildHealth
- Did you know? USDA has made it easier for school meal programs to purchase local foods. More information about these new options is available at https://www.fns.usda.gov/f2s/procuring-local-foods. #BackToSchool #SchoolMeals #FarmToSchool #ChildNutrition #ChildHealth
- Did you know? USDA has made it easier for schools to serve protein-rich breakfast foods which can help kids stay full for longer, allowing them to focus on learning! #BackToSchool #SchoolMeals #ChildNutrition #ChildHealth
- [ORGANIZATION NAME] believes every child in America deserves the opportunity to get high quality, nutritious meals at school. USDA’s National School Lunch Program provides millions of meals to students every day throughout the school year. #BacktoSchool #SchoolMeals #ChildNutrition #ChildHealth
- USDA’s Community Eligibility Provision is a win for everyone. It provides free healthy meals for all students at participating schools. #BacktoSchool #SchoolMeals #ChildNutrition #ChildHealth
- It’s #BacktoSchool season and we want to thank our school nutrition professionals who serve about 30 million kids each day through the National School Lunch Program! With USDA’s Healthy Meals Incentives Recognition Awards for school food authorities, we can celebrate their continued creativity and innovation, as well as the impact their hard work has on developing healthy eating habits. #SchoolMeals #ChildNutrition #ChildHealth
- School meal programs have many benefits, including decreasing childhood hunger, stretching families’ food budgets, and reducing administrative burdens for schools. Initiatives like the Community Eligibility Provision, Healthy Meals Incentives, and Supply Chain Assistance Funds help school meal providers feed students. #BacktoSchool #SchoolMeals #ChildNutrition #ChildHealth
- School meals provide children with the nutrition they need to grow, learn, and thrive. These meals can play a role in maximizing school attendance, which is key to a child’s educational success. #BackToSchool #SchoolMeals #ChildNutrition #ChildHealth
- Did you know? School meal programs provide nutritious, low-cost meals to about 30 million children each year. That’s why it’s important for us to continually work with schools and USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service to ensure that kids have the food they need to grow and thrive. #BacktoSchool #SchoolMeals #ChildNutrition #ChildHealth
- Did you know? Students who eat school breakfast and school lunch are more likely to consume milk and whole fruits and vegetables, which support healthy growth and development. #BacktoSchool #SchoolMeals #ChildNutrition #ChildHealth
- Did you know? Beginning this school year, schools may require unprocessed foods like fruits, vegetables, meats, dairy, and more to be locally grown, raised or caught when making purchases for school meal programs. This flexibility makes it easier for schools to buy local foods. #BackToSchool #SchoolMeals #FarmToSchool #ChildNutrition #ChildHealth
- Did you know? Beginning this school year, it will be easier for schools to serve protein-rich breakfast foods such as yogurt, tofu, eggs, nuts and seeds. These options can help reduce sugary foods, while also supporting vegetarian diets and other food preferences. #BackToSchool #SchoolMeals #ChildNutrition #ChildHealth
- LinkedIn/Facebook
- [ORGANIZATION NAME] believes every child in America deserves the opportunity to get high quality, nutritious meals at school. USDA’s National School Lunch Program provides millions of meals to students every day throughout the school year. To learn more, visit: https://www.fns.usda.gov/schoolmeals #BacktoSchool #SchoolMeals #ChildNutrition #ChildHealth
- USDA’s Community Eligibility Provision is a win for everyone. It provides free healthy meals for all students at participating schools. To learn more about CEP and other ways students get healthy meals at school, visit: https://www.fns.usda.gov/cn/cep #BacktoSchool #SchoolMeals #ChildNutrition #ChildHealth
- It’s #BacktoSchool season and we want to thank our school nutrition professionals who serve about 30 million kids each day through the National School Lunch Program! With USDA’s Healthy Meals Incentives Recognition Awards for School Food Authorities, we can celebrate their continued creativity and innovation, as well as the impact their hard work has on developing healthy eating habits. For more, check out this link: https://www.fns.usda.gov/school-meals/hmi/recognition-awards #SchoolMeals #ChildNutrition #ChildHealth
- School meal programs have many benefits, including decreasing childhood hunger, stretching families’ food budgets, and reducing administrative burdens for schools. Initiatives like the Community Eligibility Provision, Healthy Meals Incentives, and Supply Chain Assistance Funds help school meal providers feed students. Learn more here: https://www.fns.usda.gov/cn/support-schools #BacktoSchool #SchoolMeals #ChildNutrition #ChildHealth
- School meals provide children with the nutrition they need to grow, learn, and thrive. These meals can play a role in maximizing school attendance, which is key to a child’s educational success. For more information, visit: https://www.fns.usda.gov/schoolmeals #BackToSchool #SchoolMeals #ChildNutrition #ChildHealth
- Did you know? School meal programs provide nutritious, low-cost meals to about 30 million children each year. That’s why it’s important for us to continually work with schools and USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service to ensure that kids have the food they need to grow and thrive. For more information, visit: https://www.fns.usda.gov/schoolmeals #BacktoSchool #SchoolMeals #ChildNutrition #ChildHealth
- Did you know? Students who eat school breakfast and school lunch are more likely to consume milk and whole fruits and vegetables, which support healthy growth and development. To learn more about the importance of school meals, visit: https://www.fns.usda.gov/schoolmeals. #BacktoSchool #SchoolMeals #ChildNutrition #ChildHealth
- Did you know? Beginning this school year, schools may require unprocessed foods like fruits, vegetables, meats, dairy, and more to be locally grown, raised or caught when making purchases for school meal programs. This flexibility makes it easier for schools to buy local foods. More information about these new options is available at https://www.fns.usda.gov/f2s/procuring-local-foods. #BackToSchool #SchoolMeals #FarmToSchool #ChildNutrition #ChildHealth
- Did you know? Beginning this school year, it will be easier for schools to serve protein-rich breakfast foods such as yogurt, tofu, eggs, nuts and seeds. These options can help reduce sugary foods, while also supporting vegetarian diets and other food preferences. More information about how school meals will be strengthened in upcoming years is available at https://www.fns.usda.gov/cn/school-nutrition-standards-updates. #BackToSchool #SchoolMeals #ChildNutrition #ChildHealth
Flyers & Fact Sheets
Media Contacts
Reporters looking for information can contact the FNS press team.
Partnership Contacts
Partner organizations looking for information can contact the FNS External Affairs Team.