• SNAP/Food Stamps
  • Disaster SNAP/Food Stamps
  • SNAP/Food Stamp Challenges
  • SNAP/Food Stamp Eligibility
  • Participation: Gaps in Coverage and Counter-cyclical Impact
  • SNAP/Food Stamp Historic Trends: 1998-2010
  • Homeless Persons' Rights under the SNAP/Food Stamp Program
• School Breakfast and Lunch
  • School Meal Eligibility
  • National School Lunch Program
  • School Breakfast Program
  • School Breakfast State/Local Data Report Toolkit
  • School Breakfast Outreach
  • Local School Wellness Policies
  • Breakfast in the Classroom
• Afterschool Nutrition Programs
  • FRAC's Afterschool Meals Guide
  • Reimbursement Rates
  • Model Programs
  • Outreach Materials
  • Standards of Excellence - Afterschool Programs
  • Model Advocacy Efforts - Afterschool
  • Snack and Meal FAQ
  • NSLP Afterschool Snacks
  • Model Afterschool Snacks and Suppers
• Summer Nutrition Programs
  • Summer Food Site Locator 2011
  • Summer Reimbursement Rates
  • Summer FAQ
  • Nutrition Guidelines
  • Model Summer Programs
  • Model Advocacy Efforts - Summer Programs
  • Summer Nutrition Toolkit
  • State Summer Outreach Materials Clearinghouse
  • Standards of Excellence - Summer Programs
• Child and Adult Care Food Program
  • CACFP Eligibility & Reimbursement
  • Child Care Food Program Wellness Tool Kit
• WIC (Women, Infants and Children)
  • New Food Package Toolkit
  • Making WIC Work in Multicultural Communities
• Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program
  • FFVP Outreach
  • FFVP Planning Tool
• Other Programs

Summer Nutrition Programs

NEW ONLINE – Summer Food
Site Locator

Use this tool to find summer food sites across the country.

July 2010 Participation:

• an average of 2.8 million children participated each weekday in the Summer Nutrition Programs.
• 15 children received Summer Nutrition for every 100 low-income students who received lunch in the 2009-2010 school year.
• only one in seven low-income children who ate a school lunch during the regular 2009-2010 school year were reached by the Summer Nutrition Programs.

Resources

• Summer Food Target Mapper
• Latest Hunger Doesn’t Take a Vacation: Summer Nutrition Status Report (pdf)
• Model summer meals menu (pdf)
• Summer Nutrition Standards of Excellence
• FRAC’s Summer Nutrition Program Publications
• USDA/FNS Summer Food Service Program information
• State Contacts for Child Nutrition Programs
  Talk to your state agency for information on participating in the Summer Nutrition Programs – use this list to find your state agency contact.

Healthy, Hunger Free Kids Act Implementation

USDA is issuing policy memos, available on the agency’s implementation web page, to offer guidance on implementing the act.

About Summer Nutrition Programs

When school lets out, millions of low-income children lose access to the school breakfasts, lunches and afterschool snacks they receive during the regular school year. The summer food programs are there to fill this gap.

Many summer food sites provide educational enrichment and recreational activities along with meals and snacks, helping children continue to learn and stay safe when school is not in session. The meals provided through summer nutrition programs act as a magnet to draw children to these activities.

In late 2007, Congress simplified the summer food program and extended it to include all states. Simplifying the program eliminated complex accounting requirements, reduced paperwork and ensures all sponsors receive the maximum federal reimbursement.

Two federal nutrition programs exist to feed children during the summer months:

Summer Food Service Program (SFSP)
Best for:

• summer programs operated by a local government agency such as Parks and Recreation or nonprofit organization;
• schools that are especially concerned about reimbursement rates (the SFSP reimbursement is higher than the NSLP reimbursement which is the reason why some schools operate SFSP during the summer instead of NSLP).

National School Lunch Program (NSLP)
Best for:

• summer programs that are school sponsored and have a school food service department that is willing to provide healthy snacks and meals;
• summer programs that do not have the capacity to administer the snack or meal service itself.

All summer meals served through the Summer Food Service Program must meet USDA nutritional guidelines and include all of the following:

• 1 serving of milk
• 2 servings of fruits and/or vegetables
• 1 serving of grains
• 1 serving of protein

A summer breakfast can be as simple as a fruit muffin, cheese stick, watermelon slice and a carton of low-fat milk. Lunch can be as simple as vegetable pasta, a low-fat yogurt cup, watermelon and a carton of low-fat milk.

The state child nutrition agency can provide afterschool programs with additional information about the nutrition guidelines and help them plan menus that meet the USDA requirements.