Following the renewal of a federal meal plan program, the Long Beach Unified School District has announced that it will resume providing free meals to all children in Long Beach from ages 1 through 18, whether they are LBUSD students or not.
The free meal plan was extremely popular in the spring as the joint effects of a health and economic crises hit the city. In all, 994,414 free meals were distributed from March through June.
The federal government originally cut funding for the emergency food plan, which jeopardized the program and delayed its start for 2020-21, but it’s been restored.
“We were all horrified at the idea of the federal government withholding funds and letting children go hungry,” said LBUSD boardmember Megan Kerr at Wednesday evening’s Board of Education meeting. “Kids can’t learn when they’re hungry.”
Meals will now be available at 79 LBUSD schools throughout the city, at all locations except CAMS, Cubberley, Fremont, Stevenson, and Longfellow.
The meal distribution time will be 11 a.m. until 12:30 p.m. at elementary, middle, and K-8 schools and from noon until 1:30 p.m. at high schools. Children can pick up meals at any school, not just the one they attend. Parents or guardians may also pick up meals provided they have documentation that a child is part of their household. Documentation includes student IDs, a birth certificate, a tax return or any other official document.
The food program did get some blowback recently. A viral photo of a discolored piece of bread circulated Wednesday afternoon, drawing outrage and concern in Facebook groups.
The LBUSD addressed the picture in a statement on Thursday morning:
“To those of you who picked up free meals yesterday at our schools, we wanted you to know that some of the breakfast sandwiches may have had some harmless discoloration on the biscuits, caused by whole grain oxidation,” the statement reads. “These biscuits are safe if consumed, but they do look less appealing, and you may wish to simply discard the meal if you have any concern.”