October 13, 2020

The Agriculture Department on Friday said it would extend a suite of regulatory waivers to allow schools to serve free meals until the end of the school year in June, as the pandemic and economic fallout keep hunger rates high. As Pro Ag’s Helena Bottemiller Evich reports, the move was largely expected after Congress gave the department authority and funding to extend the waivers in a recent spending bill.

How we got here: Under pressure from school leaders and lawmakers on both sides of the aisle, Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue agreed in August to extend regulatory flexibility for feeding programs until the end of 2020. But USDA said it couldn’t go any further without more funding from Congress. 

The details: The department is allowing the Summer Food Service Program and Seamless Summer Options to continue through June 30, 2021, essentially letting school cafeterias serve any student for free without checking their qualifications for free or subsidized meals. They also have more flexibility to meet nutritional standards and other requirements.

But, but, but: Despite the flexibility provided by USDA for months, there’s been a notable drop in the number of meals served to students, and the School Nutrition Association says Congress still must allocate more money for the feeding programs.