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Nebraska falls to 46th nationally in summer meals participation

Nebraska ranks 46th among the 50 states and the District of Columbia for participation in the Summer Food Service Program.

James Goddard, Economic Justice Director for Nebraska Appleseed, says the ranking is concerning.  Goddard says the Food Research and Action Center, or FRAC report, shows only 8.5% of children that received free or reduced price lunches during the school year participate in the summer food service programs. 

He says that means a lot of kids that are getting fed during the school year may well be facing hunger over the summer. 

Goddard explains a couple things that could be done to help combat this problem.

"We can always use more sites.  A lot of different organizations can decide to become a summer food site and provide nutritious meals to kids during summer months.  On a state level, there are some things we could do to increase our investment in the program to make it easier for sites to start up. Grant funds, for example.”

Goddard says part of the reduction in participation may likely be due to fewer community sites serving meals in the summer of 2015. 

The FRAC report indicates there were 206 Summer Food Service Program sites operating last year compared to 276 in 2014.

For information on how to start a summer food site, the website is www.education.ne.gov