About The Summer Food Service Program
OVERVIEW | REIMBURSEMENT RATE | NUTRITION GUIDELINES | GETTING STARTED
The Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) provides funds to organizations sponsoring summer programs to serve nutritious meals to low-income children when school is out. In late 2007, Congress extended the Simplified Summer Food Program to include all states. This program eliminates complex accounting requirements, reduces paperwork and ensures all sponsors receive the maximum federal reimbursement.
Most sites can serve a maximum of two meals per day or a meal and a snack. Summer food sponsors can feed children at numerous sites throughout the community such as schools, parks & recreation programs, low-income housing complexes, or community parks and pools, essentially any place children gather during the summer months.
Summer food sites can either operate as "open" or "enrolled" sites. An "open" site is one located in a low-income area where at least fifty percent of the children are eligible for free or reduced-price school meals. The site is then open to all children in the community ages 18 and under. At an "enrolled" site, only children enrolled in the summer program can participate. The site qualifies if it is located in a low-income area or if 50 percent or more of the children enrolled in the program are eligible for free or reduced-price school meals.
Summer camps (both residential and non-residential) and summer food sites that serve primarily migrant children can also participate in summer food and can serve up to three meals a day. They operate similarly to an enrolled site but have slightly different rules.
Unlike the requirements for the afterschool snack program, summer food sites do not need to provide enrichment or educational activities. Children can simply gather at a school, park or other community site to eat their meal or snack without any type of programming taking place at the site. However, if you are able, providing some type of activity is recommended, because activities (even for 30-60 minutes) do attract more children to the site and allow them to stay active throughout the summer. The Oregon Hunger Task Force's Summer Food Guide has lots of great ideas for activities big and small.
The federal reimbursement rate for summer meals is adjusted annually to keep up with the cost of inflation. To find out how much afterschool programs can receive per meal this year, check out the current reimbursement rates for SFSP.
All summer meals served through the Summer Food Service Program must meet USDA nutritional guidelines and include all of the following:
- 1 serving of milk
- 2 servings of fruits and/or vegetables
- 1 serving of grains
- 1 serving of protein
A summer lunch can be as simple as vegetable pasta, a low-fat yogurt cup, watermelon and a carton of low-fat milk and a breakfast can be as simple as a fruit muffin, cheese stick, watermelon slice and a carton of low-fat milk.
The state child nutrition agency can provide afterschool programs with additional information about the nutrition guidelines and help them plan menus that meet the USDA requirements. Also, check out the Food Research and Action Center's model summer meals menu.
To begin serving summer meals, contact the Florida Department of Education at 1-800-504-6609. You can also check out the Resources page on our website for more tips on starting an SFSP in your community.
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