For all the challenges the COVID-19 pandemic presented, it paved the way for new solutions to answer some of society’s most persistent challenges.
As one example, the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) response to child food insecurity during COVID-19 has enabled schools across the country to institute free universal feeding programs for all children 18 and under, regardless of enrollment status, and opened a leadership opportunity for schools to play a more expansive role in closing the nutrition gap for students and their families.
In April, the USDA announced it would extend its
Pandemic Flexibilities for schools through June of 2022. This special allowance will help districts continue to serve free meals to all children throughout the 2021-2022 school year via the
Seamless Summer Option program model, which is generally only offered during the summer months.
In Southwest Florida, this newly afforded flexibility is empowering the Collier County School District (CCPS) to take a lead role in addressing child food insecurity in tandem with local partners, including Blue Zones Project by Sharecare. Blue Zones Project - Southwest Florida (BZP), which has a strong influence on the design of local healthy school lunch programs, strategically built a partnership with CCPS that encouraged the directors of the district’s nutrition program to let in more outside partners to collaborate.
Now, not only can CCPS feed every child inside its boundaries, but it can also bring more organizations to the table to holistically support child nutrition and education while addressing food security needs of the whole household. This collaboration has been facilitated by the outside groups’ participation on the SWFL Food Policy Council (Council) launched by BZP in May 2020. The Council focuses on instituting regional policy, systems, and environmental changes that improve healthy food access. With members that range from food banks and pantries to funders, educational institutions and policy makers, matching problems with the solutions happens, sometimes, within a single meeting.
Such is the case with CCPS’ Summer Food Service Program, where free breakfast and lunch will be home-delivered to children along regular school bus routes, with the option of pickup also available. Food delivery has proven essential for many children who remain home alone while their parents are at work. Were it not for the drop-off locations in the neighborhoods, many children would go hungry.
Before the pandemic, the USDA’s National School Lunch Program was feeding 29.4 million children per day, costing taxpayers $14.2 billion per year. Its onerous regulations and requirements that often force schools to work with larger, cheaper distributors restrict opportunities for school districts to engage partners, students, and parents in creating a holistic nutrition program.
“Traditionally, ‘cooking’ lunch in schools has become more about opening packages and heating food up than creating dishes with fresh, whole foods,” said Joe Stoner, Blue Zones Project SWFL Schools Lead. “This is why we have to work within the community to bring fresh produce and healthier eating strategies back to individual schools and districts.”
Removing these barriers by sticking with a universal meal program far beyond 2022 would allow more flexibility for schools to create solutions, such as using produce from their school gardens or local farms.
To take advantage of the region’s productive growing season, BZP hopes to create a model system for bringing fresh, whole foods to every child’s table, universally improving child health outcomes. As districts gain the autonomy to create food systems that best fit the needs of their community, they can design more efficient meal services that are higher in nutrient density, more cost effective, and reduce food waste.