Earlier this month, the Food Research & Action Center in Washington, D.C., published its annual School Breakfast Scorecard, analyzing school breakfast participation throughout the country for the 2017-2018 school year. Here are six things to know from the report.
All told, 14.6 million students participated in school breakfast on an average school day last year. Almost 12.5 million of those participants came from low-income families and received free or reduced-price breakfast. Low-income student breakfast participation increased 1.2% compared to the prior school year.
2. W. Va has the highest participation among low-income students
For the fifth year in a row, West Virginia had the highest rate of student breakfast participation among low-income students. For every 100 low-income students partaking in school lunch throughout the state, 83.7 participated in school breakfast.
3. Mont. sees the biggest increase in low-income participation
Montana saw the greatest growth in breakfast participation among low-income students: Participation among recipients of free and reduced-price meals grew by 12.3%.
Going beyond typical plant-forward recipes, R&D Chef Sarah Bodner introduces new ideas that can be replicated all year, not just at special Earth Day events.
The summit, which is part of the USDA’s and Action for Healthy Kids’ Healthy Meals Incentives, allowed operators from small and rural districts to connect and find ways to improve their programs.
University of Florida’s solution for feeding students in the midst of construction of a new dining hall has turned out so well, it will almost be a shame to see it go.