No school, no problem: Utah's summer meal programs address student food insecurity

Yahoo

27-05-2025

While many students look forward to the end of the school year and the start of summer break, roughly 17% of Utah children who suffer from food insecurity may worry more about where their food will come from without access to school lunch.
To help children and families meet nutritional needs over the break, the Utah State Board of Education's Child Nutrition Program administers more than a dozen federal food programs working together to feed low-income children. Free meals will be available through these programs at over 300 locations combined at schools, libraries, parks and community centers this summer. The locations are spread across the state, with close to 30 locations in Salt Lake City, 18 in Ogden and 40 throughout Utah County.
Several school districts will participate in the Utah Summer Food Service Program and Seamless Summer Option, which provide free meals to children 18 and younger and offer low-cost meals for adults. Children must be present to collect their meals and eat at the site, but some take-home items like fruit may be provided. Most meal sites will be closed on state holidays, including Juneteenth, Fourth of July and Pioneer Day.
'I think there is a great need,' said Sheldon Moore, field supervisor for the Child Nutrition Program. 'Most of the kids rely on our breakfast and lunch meals during (the) school year. When school is out, they still need to be fed ... so this program actually bridges the gap in the summer months to make sure that our kids are still fed.'
Salt Lake City School District will provide free lunches at the Salt Lake City Public Library, local elementary schools and parks between June 4 and Aug. 9. Free breakfast will also be provided at participating schools when summer school is in session. Visit the Salt Lake City School District website for site-specific hours and schedules.
Granite School District will provide free lunches at 14 locations in West Valley City, Magna, Kearns, Taylorsville and Salt Lake City on weekdays from June 9 to Aug.1. Adult meals at these locations will be $3.50 each. The school district also plans to host a summer meals kickoff celebration to provide free barbecue and games on June 10. Details on participating locations, schedules and menus are available on their website here.
Davis School District will serve free lunches at 15 schools across the district on Mondays through Thursdays from June 2 to July 23. Lunch is available from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., and adults eat for $4.25 per meal. The full list of participating locations is available here.
Alpine School District will offer free lunch and breakfast for children at several schools this summer. Adults can join their children for breakfast for $3 or lunch for $5. The summer meal schedule for June, with locations and menu options, is available on the school district's Facebook page.
Utah's child nutrition programs served 68,530 free summer meals in the Salt Lake City School District in 2024, according to Moore.
'That just shows you, just (in this) district, how many kids this program impacted. Then, if you throw in everybody else just around us, you can see how much this program is needed,' said Moore.
A cumulative list of organizations participating in Utah summer meals and their operating dates can be found here.
The board of education announced on Tuesday that the SUN Meals program will also be returning to Utah this summer to offer free meals and snacks. The federally funded program, administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, provides food to low-income children age 18 and under who qualify for reduced-price or free lunch at various locations in their communities.
School meal programs reported nearly 200,000 students were determined eligible for free or reduced-priced school meals in 2024, according to reports from the Child Nutrition Program.
Most locations are congregate meal sites, meaning students must be present to receive their meal — rather than have a parent pick it up — and must eat at the site. In rural communities where it may be more difficult to travel to a meal site, the program also offers meals at noncongregate sites for pickup and delivery through SUN Meals-to-go.
SUN Meals programs are being offered in addition to the SUN Bucks or Summer EBT program, which provides $120 per child in households that receive assistance from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families and Medicaid. Households with children receiving reduced or free lunch or already enrolled in these programs will be automatically enrolled in SUN Bucks.
'It's important for our Utah students to have access to healthy and nutritious meals, not only when they're in the classroom, but when they're out of the classroom, as well,' said Sharon Turner, director of public affairs for the Utah State Board of Education. 'So, the SUN bucks and SUN meals programs will provide different ways and methods where they can have access to that.'
SUN Bucks funds are scheduled to be dispersed in June this year. For more information or to apply to the program, visit the Department of Workforce Services website here.
A map of locations that offer SUN Meal services throughout the summer is available on the U.S. Department of Agriculture website. While information for the state is not on the website yet, it is updated every Friday, and Utah-specific updates will be added by the end of May and June, according to the Utah State Board of Education.