Support Strong Investments In Quality School Meals For CA Kids

Supply chain disruptions, lack of kitchen equipment, staffing shortages, and now high gas prices have left California school districts struggling to deliver on the promise of providing fresh meals to our students. But we still have time to ensure School Meals for All is a first-in-the-nation success story!

Let’s keep our promise to our kids by supporting:

$650 million to fund universal access to school meals;
$450 million over three years to upgrade school kitchen infrastructure and equipment;
$30 million to establish new farm to school projects;
$3 million in ongoing funding for 16 new positions to expand the farm-to-school network.

All kids deserve access to quality, fresh school meals as they learn, grow and thrive.

Sign Up to Make School Meals Better

“Freshly prepared food will fill students’ bellies and properly nourish them so that they can expand their learning and whole education. To do more freshly prepared cooking, I need better equipment and the skilled labor to properly use it. That is what will ultimately lead to more program participation.”

-Erin Primer, Director of Food Service, San Luis Coastal Unified School District

“More funds means more fresh meals and more student particpation.”

Michael Jochner, Director of Student Nutrition & Records Retention, Morgan Hill Unified School District

“The kids are excited when we cook with more fresh, raw ingredients, but we can’t catch up. Our kitchens are not equipped to prepare more freshly-prepared meals. For example, I ordered 400 pounds of squash from a local farmer and brought it to my kitchen staff only to learn that we didn’t have the appropriate knives in our kitchen or the right skill set on staff to properly cut and prepare squash.”

-Jessie Wesch, Director of Food Service, Paso Robles Unified School District