At the Top of Back-to-School Lists this Year? Ensuring No Child Goes Hungry.

For many American schoolkids, going back to the classroom this fall will be more than a return to new teachers, new subjects, and old friends; it will also mean once again knowing when and where their next meal is coming.  

 During the school year, many children rely on supplemental food to meet their nutritional needs. That can include free or reduced-priced meals during the school day and food for students and their families over weekends and school breaks. In many instances, these are the only consistent, nourishing meals children and families in need can rely on.  

 No child—no person, for that matter— should go hungry. And while food insecurity has been a persistent public food concern, the pandemic and rising inflation further exacerbated the problem. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service, as many as 30 million adults and 12 million children in our country may not always have access to nutritious food.  

 Our mission at Food Systems for the Future Institute (FSFI) is to enable innovative, market-driven food and agriculture enterprises that sustainably, measurably, and profitably improve nutrition for underserved and low-income communities. But eradicating malnutrition is an enormous endeavor, and no single entity can fix the problem alone. 

Extending benefits to nourish lives and livelihoods 

One of the best ways we have to ensure that more households have access to affordable food is through the Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) program, which enables Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) participants to pay for food at SNAP authorized retail stores in all 50 states.  

In response to the COVID-19 outbreak and the school disruptions that followed, pandemic EBT (P-EBT) was enacted by the federal government on November 4, 2020, to provide eligible families with EBT cards that included the value of school meals for days when school was closed or students were learning remotely. The American Rescue Plan followed in 2021 and extended P-EBT benefits to include the summer months and committed $880 million to deliver more fruits and vegetables to moms and babies. 

These were significant changes because according to the Food Research & Action Center, summer P-EBT benefits can reduce very low food insecurity by one-third, and food insecurity by one-fifth. These expanded benefits also improve nutrition outcomes in children.  

FSF founder Ertharin Cousin agrees that the pandemic pushed policymakers to respond to some of the nation’s hunger challenges – especially those affecting students and families: “The inequities in accessing affordable, nutritious food have always existed,” she says, “but the pandemic peeled back what was hiding in plain sight – that millions of children and families in our country are waking up and going to bed hungry and struggling to put food on the table. We know where the investments are needed in our food systems. It will take all of us playing an active role – schools, businesses, policymakers, community organizations – and partnering to create permanent solutions to our nation’s hunger crisis.”  

FSF applauds and supports these important programs. But we also join the many food organizations in asking that these benefits be made permanent. Doing so will represent a significant step forward in reducing food insecurity and malnutrition. But much more needs to be done.  

Scaling food and agriculture innovation  

At the same time that we urge government leaders to protect expanded pathways to affordable food, we cannot overlook the capacity of the private sector to fill the funding gaps that prevent innovative agriculture and food system businesses from scaling their community impact.   

For years, many private businesses and corporations have deemed investments in agriculture and food systems too risky. However, that belief is changing. Increasingly, there is a growing understanding that we cannot begin to fix our broken food systems without multi-sector partnerships.  

Creating resilient food systems able to withstand the devastating consequences of a changing climate, global conflicts, disrupted supply chains and so much more will require significant and on-going tools, technology, and funding from the private sector in particular – especially directed at smaller-scale food producers and underserved consumers.  

And that is where FSF fits in. Ending diet related disease and hunger requires year-round consumer access to affordable healthy food delivered through a sustainable market-based food system. Through our Good Food Opportunity Fund, FSF partners and invests in people and communities too often overlooked and unfunded by traditional venture capitalists. We primarily work with talented Black and Latinx entrepreneurs who are operating proven market-based, scalable, innovative food and agriculture enterprises capable of delivering nutrition impacts, as well as a market return.  

At FSF, we see an opportunity to shape markets and improve the access, affordability, and consumption of nutritious food but we must begin by removing the barriers to capital for founders and entrepreneurs historically left out because of who they are; where they come from; and the color of their skin.  

While we continue working with investors to help them also realize this opportunity, we look forward to a renewed commitment from the federal government to ensuring food justice for communities that have long been neglected.   

Recognizing urgent need for change 

Recognizing the critical need for action, the Biden-Harris Administration has announced a Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health scheduled for September 28, 2022 in Washington, D.C. The conference aims to catalyze the changes needed to end hunger and increase healthy eating and physical activity by 2030 through an ambitious food policy agenda for the future. 

To achieve the change needed to reach those in greatest need, it is critical to hear from all of those impacted by hunger, poor nutrition, and diet-related diseases. 

To do exactly that, FSF launched Good Food Dialogues. Through the local, community-driven conversations and solutions that result from Good Food Dialogues, we will explore critical issues and perspectives that will inform the hunger and nutrition priorities discussed at the upcoming White House Conference and drive transformative change and permanent partnership long after the Conference ends.  

As part of this effort, we are asking communities and individuals to convene a local Good Food Dialogue to share their voices, stories, and expertise. Dialogues give all participants an opportunity to contribute to the design of the national strategy to end hunger, reduce diet-related diseases and the disparities surrounding them, and explore how we all can work together to make the necessary transformations in the coming years. 

Together we can elevate, uplift, and mobilize stakeholders across the country to catalyze and drive the change required to create a healthier and hunger-free America.