Strengthening the Impact of USDA’s Child Nutrition Summer Feeding Programs During and After the COVID-19 Pandemic

Published: May 2021

Publisher: Healthy Eating Research

Authors: Soldavini J, Franckle RL, Dunn C, Turner L, Fleischhacker S

See more related research

Share

To address food insecurity during the COVID-19 pandemic, utilization of the USDA child nutrition summer feeding programs has drastically increased. Given the unprecedented use of the summer feeding programs, this research brief will (1) explain the meal pattern requirements and select operational differences between the summer feeding programs and the federal meal programs typically utilized during a traditional school year; (2) summarize summer feeding programs’ evidence of effectiveness, with a focus on food insecurity and nutrition quality; (3) discuss key summer feeding programs challenges, adaptations, needs, and opportunities resulting from COVID-19; and (4) identify critical knowledge gaps and opportunities with the greatest likelihood to shape future summer feeding programs policy and practice.

 

Read the Issue Brief

Age Groups: Adolescents (grades 9 to 12), Elementary-age children (grades K to 5), Young adolescents (grades 6 to 8)

Keywords: Food insecurity, Fruits and vegetables, Nutrition standards, School meal programs

State: National

Focus Areas: Nutrition Policy & Programs, School & After School

Resource Type: Research Brief

Related Research

July 2026

Forecasting WIC Funding Needs: Supporting Families, Strengthening Access

In partnership with Westat and with support from Healthy Eating Research, the National WIC Association (NWA) developed a new forecasting model to project funding needs of the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) for Fiscal Year 2027. Report This report describes the model development, including methodology, as well as analysis conducted More

May 2026

SNAP participation and the healthfulness of food purchased by households with children during the pandemic

Changes in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic included emergency benefit allotments and operation waivers. Using five expenditure-based measures of the nutritional quality of food purchases, we tested whether changes in SNAP during the first year of the pandemic were associated with better nutritional quality of food purchases More

May 2026

A Pediatric Perspective on the 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines

Clear, evidence-based guidance on what foods and beverages children and adolescents should consume—and in what amounts—is foundational for promoting healthy growth and preventing diet-related chronic disease across the life course. Yet many children and adolescents in the US continue to have diets of poor nutritional quality. The Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGAs), issued every 5 More