New Back-to-School Report from No Kid Hungry: School Meals Serve as Lifeline as 1 in 3 Parents Worried about Putting Food on the Table for Kids this Summer Break

USA - English

• USA - español

Tan France, Tiffany Derry, Kristin Cavallari and Chelsey White team up with No Kid Hungry to bring awareness that food is the most important school supply

[Media: For Photos & Assets, Click HERE]

WASHINGTON, Sept. 4, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- An overwhelming number of parents are facing more challenges to put food on the table for their kids due to rising food costs and a worsening job market, according to new research released today by No Kid Hungry. Among the national sample of parents surveyed*, more than 1 in 4 families reported experiencing the loss of a job, and 4 out of 10 parents reported a worsened financial situation. This paired with the steadily rising costs of living resulted in more than one-third of parents reporting that they worried about their households running out of food during the summer break, and 40% having to make tough trade-offs like choosing between paying emergency bills and purchasing healthy food for their children over the past year.

According to a mother surveyed in Colorado: "Making ends meet is the biggest challenge right now. We both work with five kids in the house. It's a stretch every month to meet everybody's needs. It's tough in this economy. And we do have concerns about feeding them. We watch our dollars a lot closer, but there are times when we can barely scrape things together to make a meal."

For many kids, summer is the hungriest time of year when kids lose access to free and reduced-price school meals. As 2 in 3 parents worry food prices will continue to rise throughout the year, the back-to-school season marks the return of these essential school meal programs, providing stress and financial relief for parents and caregivers struggling to make ends meet and ensuring kids have access to the most important school supply: Food. Key findings include:

• School meals increase academic success and attendance rates 
  • 83% of parents agree their children have a hard time concentrating when hungry. Having a full belly ensures that kids have the mental clarity necessary to learn with 88% reporting that school meals help their child(ren) focus and do better in school.
  • 3 out of 5 parents report that school meals motivate their children to attend school regularly. And some parents report increased extracurricular engagement as well.

• School meal programs reduce mental and financial stress for parents and help build stronger families
  • With more than half of parents worrying about the necessary costs of going back to school like clothes and notebooks, school lunch and breakfast programs ease the concern for food access while their kid(s) are in the classroom. Nearly half of the parents indicated that their children may not have food to eat at school some days if the school meal program did not exist.
  • Over 3 in 5 parents share that school meals are extremely valuable for their family. For many parents, this value can come in the form of mental health benefits and the ability to be more present with their kids.
  • While nearly half of parents believe the stress they feel interferes with their parenting, even more – 2 in 3 – report that school meals help reduce it.

Another parent, a father in Georgia reported: "It feels like no matter how much you earn, nothing kind of remains. It's living paycheck by paycheck. When you are on a tight budget, a meal from a school helps you pass through that difficult phase."

An in-depth look at the survey's key findings can be viewed HERE.

"It goes beyond just meals," said George Kelemen, senior vice president of program partnerships, campaigns and advocacy at Share Our Strength, the organization behind the No Kid Hungry campaign. "When kids can rely on the meals they receive at school, everyone benefits. It means more stability for hard-working parents who are managing the stresses of rising costs and living paycheck to paycheck. It means kids can grow up healthier, focus in the classroom and are more likely to graduate and escape the cycle of poverty. Stronger, smarter kids means a stronger, smarter nation for us all."

TV Host and Designer Tan France, Chef and Restaurateur Tiffany Derry, TV Personality Kristin Cavallari and Baking Blogger Chelsey White have teamed up with No Kid Hungry to bring awareness to the importance of school meal programs.

"As a parent, you want the best for your kids," said Tan France, tv host and designer. "School meals allow kids that opportunity to be their best and for families to be happier and healthier in every aspect. I'm proud to team up with No Kid Hungry to bring attention to these findings and help more kids access the food they need to thrive inside and outside of the classroom this year."

Nearly 14 million kids in the U.S. are living with hunger, but No Kid Hungry is changing that by working with schools and communities across the country to make sure they have the resources and funds they need to strengthen school meal programs like breakfast, lunch and afterschool meals to feed as many students as possible. In the 2023-2024 school year, No Kid Hungry's partners served more than 374 million meals to kids and families nationwide.

No Kid Hungry is proud to work with nearly 20 participating brands to ensure all kids have access to the most important school supply this school year and every day, including: Arby's Foundation, Jack in the Box, Ben's Original™, Tropical Smoothie Cafe and Wingstop.

* The 2025 Back To School Report features key findings from parents whose children eat free or reduced meals at school at 185% FPL or lower surveyed this past summer, including a national sample (n = 1,245), as well as a segment of Hispanic parents and caregivers (n = 386). Key survey findings can be found here. 

About No Kid Hungry
No child should go hungry in America. But millions of kids in the United States live with hunger. No Kid Hungry is working to end childhood hunger by helping launch and improve programs that give all kids the healthy food they need to thrive. This is a problem we know how to solve. No Kid Hungry is a campaign of Share Our Strength, an organization committed to ending hunger and poverty. Join us at NoKidHungry.org.

Media Contact:
Allison deBrauwere Ruta, [email protected]

SOURCE No Kid Hungry