Last week, the Colorado Department of Education (CDE) announced its Summer Meals Program, which offers free meals to youth at 600 locations across Colorado.
The meal sites are designed so that “all children and teens ages 18 and younger are eligible to receive free meals through the Summer Meals Program – no application or proof of income is required,” according to the Kids Food Finder website.
The meal sites are hosted by organizations such as schools, other government entities, nonprofits, and universities. Children are not required to sign up to participate in the program.
Additionally, the Summer Meals Program guarantees that all of its meals served will follow USDA nutrition guidelines, which have been criticized by reputable outside experts. This means the meals will be comprised of “real food,” prioritizing minimally processed fruits, vegetables, and protein over the carb-heavy dietary recommendations seen in previous government nutrition guidelines, according to the USDA guidelines website.
The meals program aims to help families cover their children’s meals when school is not in session, according to a CDE news release, which also stated that families in the EBT program would receive $120 per eligible child to help cover the cost of groceries.
Administered by CDE, working with community-based program sponsors, the program is funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
The program was created in an effort to fulfill the CDE’s mission as outlined in the news release: “to create equitable educational environments where all students and staff in Colorado thrive. Our role is to improve student outcomes and ensure students and families across Colorado have access to high-quality schools by serving, guiding, and elevating our state’s 178 school districts and BOCES.”
