Summer Food Service Program Looks to Expand in North Dakota

Nearly 80,000 children eat lunch at school in North Dakota during the school year; about one-half of those lunches are served to children from families with low incomes.

Now that school is out for the summer, kids are at home or out in the community, and they still need to eat lunch.  There is a Summer Food Service Program that provides lunches to kids in the state, but only about 3,800 lunches per day are served.  That shows a big gap in the number of lunches served during the school year and those served during the summer. With increasing food costs and parents working throughout the day, the question is, “Where are kids eating?”

To help fill the gap, the search is on for organizations to sponsor Summer Food Service Programs (SFSP’s) in the state. Child Nutrition and Food Distribution Programs in the North Dakota Department of Public Instruction administers this federal child nutrition program of the USDA. The program provides reimbursement for meals served in low-income areas of a town or to those organizations that serve a high number of children from low-income families.  Sponsoring agencies can be school (public or private), government agencies, private nonprofit organizations, or others.

If you think you know of an organization who could sponsor, prepare and serve lunches, breakfasts and/or snacks to kids, look for more information at USDA's Summer Food Service Program or ND Department of Public Instruction's Child Nutrition and Food Distribution  or contact Kaye at Child Nutrition Food Distribution Programs, 701- 328-2275. 

Karen K. Ehrens, RD, LRD
Creating a Hunger Free North Dakota Coalition Coordinator