After Federal Cuts to Nutrition Support, Kids Will Pay the Price

After Federal Cuts to Nutrition Support, Kids Will Pay the Price

July 3, 2025—Today, Congress passed a reconciliation package that makes major changes to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), the nation’s most effective anti-hunger program—changes that will have lasting consequences for kids and families. The president is expected to sign it.

Nearly half of SNAP participants are children, making SNAP one of the most powerful tools we have to reduce hunger, improve health outcomes, and help families meet their basic needs every day. The bill shifts SNAP costs to states, which are already managing significant financial challenges, and also eliminates SNAP-Ed—the only dedicated federal support for nutrition education.

These sweeping changes follow a series of recent rollbacks that threaten the stability of our national nutrition infrastructure. In recent months, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has eliminated the Patrick Leahy Farm to School Grant Program and canceled $660 million in Local Food for Schools and Child Care (LFSCC) funding. These programs have played a vital role in helping schools serve fresh, local food and invest in community-based agriculture.

Taken together, these cuts represent a drastic disinvestment in the systems that nourish children and families. Local farmers, especially smaller and historically underserved producers, will lose reliable markets. Schools will be forced to reduce access to fresh fruits, vegetables, and proteins, and instead rely more heavily on processed foods. Innovative models such as farm-to-school programs and scratch cooking will be harder to maintain.

In addition, these changes will affect the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP), which allows certain schools to offer free meals to all students. As access to SNAP declines because of new cost-sharing requirements, fewer students will automatically qualify for free meals through direct certification. This will place additional strain on schools and make it harder to ensure every child has access to the food they need.

The consequences of these decisions have profound effects in communities across the country. When children lose access to food education; when families struggle to afford groceries; and when schools can no longer serve nutritious meals, the outcome is not merely a policy change. It is an immense setback for the health and well-being of the next generation. These impacts are especially far-reaching in communities already navigating economic and structural challenges—often at the hands of systemic under-resourcing.

At FoodCorps, we believe that every child—in every school, zip code, and community across the country—deserves access to nourishing food, robust and relevant nutrition education, and a food system that supports local resilience. These values are not optional. They are essential.

We remain committed to working with schools, families, community partners, and policymakers to protect the programs that help children thrive. There is still time to chart a path forward—but our legislators must choose to take it.

Curt Ellis is the co-founder and CEO of FoodCorps. Rachel Willis is FoodCorps’ President.

About FoodCorps
FoodCorps is a national nonprofit advancing child well-being through food in school. FoodCorps partners with students, families, and communities to champion nourishing food at local, state, and national levels. Our members support schools in providing nutritious meals, locally-informed food education, and welcoming school environments that set kids up for positive, vibrant relationships with food. Building on this program, we develop leaders, grow networks, and advocate for policies in service of every kid’s health and well-being. FoodCorps is working toward a world where, by 2030, all 50 million public school students have access to food education and nourishing meals in school. Learn more at www.foodcorps.org.

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