The child nutrition programs support meals and snacks served to children in schools, child care, summer programs, and other institutional settings in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. territories. This report starts with an overview of child nutrition programs' funding structure and then provides detail on each program,…

The federal government has a long history of investing in programs for feeding children, starting with federal aid for school lunch programs in the 1930s. Today, federal child nutrition programs support food served to children in schools and a variety of other institutional settings. The child nutrition programs support meals and snacks served to…

The U.S. Congress has passed a measure that would scrap the Child Nutrition Act's requirements and funding for more healthy lunches in schools. Unfortunately, foods of lower nutritional value are more available than healthier snacks in the nation's schools. The author argues that providing students with more fresh fruit and produce, whole grains…

In 2012, nearly 16 million U.S. children, or over one in five, lived in households that were food-insecure, which the U.S. Department of Agriculture defines as "a household-level economic and social condition of limited access to food." Even when we control for the effects of other factors correlated with poverty, these children are more…

The weak economy is challenging the child care program budget. Fluctuations in enrollment come up against rising costs making every penny count. So for many reasons a federal program that helps defray the costs of snacks and meals in child care programs is particularly important and timely. In this article, the author pushes for the…

The mission of the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) is to safeguard the health of low-income women, infants, and children through age 4 who are at nutritional risk. WIC provides nutritious foods to supplement diets, nutrition education, and referrals to health care and other social services.…