A farmer wearing a plaid shirt, overalls, and a hat stands in front of a field of crops and holds up three different varieties of kale. Children are facing the farmer with their backs turned to the camera. The Farm Bill can make it easier for kids to access farm-fresh food at school.
Farmer Jeremy shows students three varieties of kale at Winter Green Farm in Noti, Oregon.

Last updated in August 2026

Have you heard of the Farm Bill? Despite its name, this legislative powerhouse addresses much more than farming—and it has a big impact on what kids eat at school.

The “Farm Bill” refers to a package of legislation overseeing a wide array of food and agricultural programs. The last Farm Bill was passed in 2018, meaning Congress is long overdue to revisit it.

The Farm Bill can be overwhelming to understand, but it’s also relevant to every single person in the country and especially to kids who rely on schools for their daily nutrition.

Here are three important things to know about the Farm Bill.

The Farm Bill is a big investment in our food system.

Let’s get more granular about what goes into the Farm Bill.

The Farm Bill is what’s known as an omnibus bill package—a single proposal that contains many smaller measures—and it passes approximately every five years. Drafted by the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry and the House Committee on Agriculture, it is the most important legislative vehicle through which the USDA enacts policy change. 

Policies enacted via the Farm Bill are also critical in creating a healthy and sustainable school meal supply chain, connecting schools to local producers and small-scale farmers, and making school meals more affordable. This means…

The Farm Bill impacts school nutrition.

FoodCorps is deeply invested in the Farm Bill, which has significant impacts on school meals. 

Many kids are eligible for free school meals because their family already participates in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP. This process is called direct certification through the Community Eligibility Provision, and it eliminates burdensome paperwork and automatically ensures kids who receive SNAP at home are eligible to receive free meals during the school day. A reduction in SNAP eligibility could mean fewer students qualifying to receive free school meals, a critical program that ensures kids are nourished and ready to learn. 

The Farm Bill can also help build stronger connections between farmers and school nutrition programs. For example, FoodCorps has long supported legislation that would make it easier for schools to source locally grown, locally raised, and locally caught food and farm products for their meal programs, as these local products are often more nutritious and benefit local economies.

In fact, during the pandemic, some FoodCorps school district partners shared that they were able to avoid many food-related supply chain challenges by working with local vendors and producers. This makes it even clearer that…

The Farm Bill will require bipartisan support to be successful.

Lawmakers are long overdue on passing a new Farm Bill, and we don’t know yet exactly what the final legislation will look like or what will be included. Most recently, Senate Agriculture Committee Chair John Boozman released a Farm Bill discussion draft that left in place harmful cuts to SNAP, a real threat to families. FoodCorps is watching closely for updates.

No matter what the upcoming process looks like, one thing is for sure: with a highly divided legislature, the success of the Farm Bill depends on bipartisan cooperation and support. 

The Farm Bill is a major investment in our farmers, our food system, and our kids. Ensuring our children are nourished and thriving is a bipartisan issue. FoodCorps will continue to work with policymakers to pass a bipartisan Farm Bill that supports a resilient supply chain, builds stronger connections between schools and local producers, and above all, prioritizes the well-being of our nation’s kids. 

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