Nearly 400,000 Summertime Meals Served to Local Kids in 2024

Summer is the peak season for childhood hunger as students go without meals they would normally receive at school. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Summer Food Service Program (SFSP), also known as the Summer Meals Program, provides kids and teens in low-income areas with free meals and activities when school is out. Encouraging children and families to “Meet Up and Eat Up,” Hunger Task Force administers the SFSP in such a large and inclusive way that it’s often dubbed the “Milwaukee Model.”

Summer has come and gone, and students have returned to their classrooms and the routine of the school year. During the 2024 summer break, 386,598 meals were served at over 170 sites within the Milwaukee collaboration. “A summer meal program requires extensive coordination with local partners,” says Reno Wright, Advocacy Director at Hunger Task Force. “Hunger Task Force works with school districts, non-profit organizations, sponsors and county services to fill the summer nutrition gap.”

In 2024, the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (DPI) expanded the availability of non-congregate sites – or takeaway meal options – to reach even more children in Wisconsin. Unlike Milwaukee’s meal sites where kids gather to eat together, these grab-and-go sites are in places that are more convenient for children living in rural areas or counties where families might be spread out or have transportation difficulties.

Hunger Task Force played a crucial role in promoting this model by conducting outreach to communities across the state to identify areas where non-congregate sites would be most beneficial. Through these efforts, nearly 30 communities were connected to takeaway summer meal options to ensure children in need had access to healthy food during the summer months.

“Hunger Task Force works to help families find food and resources with dignity,” says Matt King, CEO of Hunger Task Force. “We are continuing to develop partnerships and innovative solutions to address summer hunger because no child should go hungry.”

Keeping the children of Wisconsin fed is incredibly important work and a commitment of Hunger Task Force. The efforts help our city’s children return to school heathy and ready to learn in the fall.