Barriers to Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) Implementation Before and After COVID-19: A Qualitative, Collective Case Study

Authors

Masoomeh Hajizadeh Oghaz, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
Falah N. Rashoka, University of Nebraska - LincolnFollow
Megan S. Kelley, University of Nebraska Medical CenterFollow

Date of this Version

2022

Citation

Curr Dev Nutr. 2022 Jun; 6(Suppl 1): 113. Published online 2022 Jun 14.

doi: 10.1093/cdn/nzac051.029

PMCID: PMC9193415

Abstract

Objectives: SFSP, as a federal food assistance program, could ensure that children have sufficient nutritious food during summer. According to a 2016 USDA report, only 0.4–0.6% of eligible children participated in this program in Nebraska, which makes for one of the lowest SFSP participation rates in the U.S. This study aims to better understand how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted SFSP implementation in urban and rural settings across the state.

Conclusions: Insights from this study may inform the development of policies that expand food access to vulnerable families. On the organizational level, this includes providing participating kids and their parents with both meal distribution options - meal sites and delivery options - during summer. On the policy level, this calls for revising the eligibility of SFSP by decreasing the threshold level from 50% to 30% to allow more schools in low-income neighborhoods to participate.