FOOD RESEARCH & ACTION CENTER INC

The National School Lunch Program — the nation’s second largest food and nutrition assistance program behind SNAP — makes it possible for all school children in the U.S. to receive a nutritious lunch every school day. The vast majority of schools — approximately 95 percent — participate in the program, providing meals to more than 30 million children on an average day.

The School Breakfast Program provides millions of children a nutritious morning meal each school day. School breakfast is a critical support for struggling families trying to stretch limited resources and provides children a significant portion of the nutrition they need to learn and be healthy.

The Afterschool Nutrition Programs allows schools, local government agencies, and private nonprofits to serve a meal and a snack to children after school, on weekends, and during school holidays.

When school lets out for summer, millions of low-income children lose access to the school breakfasts, lunches and afterschool snacks and meals they receive during the regular school year. The Summer Nutrition Programs help fill this gap by providing free meals and snacks to children who might otherwise go hungry.

Created in response to COVID-19, Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer (P-EBT) provides nutritional resources to families who have lost access to free or reduced-price school meals due to school closures. Families will receive money on a new or existing EBT card to help fill the school meals gap.

FRAC is the leading advocacy group working to ensure that school meals, out-of-school time meals, and Pandemic EBT have the most profound impact on childhood hunger and poverty, health, development, and learning. Working at the national, state, and local levels, FRAC engages in advocacy, research, communications, and partnerships to ensure access to the school-aged child nutrition programs is maximized, eligibility is expanded, participation meets need, and nutrition standards support good nutrition and health.

The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) provides low-income nutritionally at-risk pregnant women, postpartum mothers, infants, and children up to 5 years old with nutritious foods, nutrition education, breastfeeding support, and referrals to health care. Research shows that WIC improves participants’ health and well-being, dietary intake, and birth and health outcomes; protects against obesity; and supports learning and development. WIC benefits are cost-effective, generating major savings in federal, state, local, and private health care, as well as special education costs. Studies demonstrate that WIC improves the food and economic security of participants by reducing food insecurity, helping to alleviate poverty, and supporting economic stability.

The Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) helps provide nutritious meals and snacks for eligible children and elderly or disabled adults who are enrolled at participating child care centers, family child care homes, afterschool programs, Head Start programs, adult care centers, and homeless shelters. CACFP ensures that children start good nutrition habits early in life, grow healthy and strong, and are prepared for school by being ready to learn. The program, which normally distributes $3.4 billion/year in meal reimbursements, plays a vital role in improving the quality of child care and making it more affordable for many families with low incomes.

Working at the national, state, and local levels, FRAC engages in advocacy, research, communications, and partnerships to ensure access to the early childhood programs is maximized, eligibility is expanded, participation meets need, and nutrition standards support good nutrition and health.