Wouldn’t that be a great headline? And the reality is we could do it. There is enough food produced that could end hunger for everyone. The problem is America’s elected leaders don’t see this as a priority.
Right now, about 1 in 5 kids aljournal.com/2025/08/26/back-to-school-hunger-still-hits-1-in-5-ohio-children/ in Ohio experience hunger. Unsurprisingly, about 27% of black children in America experience food insecurity.
Here are a few simple policies that could be past that would reduce the rate of childhood hunger over the course of the next 12 months.
Universal School Meals (STATE): The current system in Ohio provides free meals to some students. Those students either live in an extremely high poverty district where all students are eligible or fill out paperwork indicating that their household earns less than 185% of the federal poverty level. The federal level is 130% but the state of Ohio increased the free meal option in 2023. If Ohio invested $300 million to guarantee every student had a high quality breakfast and lunch every school day, it would dramatically reduce rates of childhood food insecurity.
Expand SNAP (FEDERAL): The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is our first line of defense against hunger. It sets benefit levels based on a federal calculation of the Thrifty Food Plan that attempts to calculate the cost of a basic diet. However, the Thrifty food plan needs to be updated to incorporate more proteins and fresh produce. It also needs to allow the USDA to adjust it annually as grocery prices increase and to reflect a more nutritious diet. Sadly, the Big BOGUS Bill in Congress will not allow those updates to occur.
Child Tax Credit (STATE AND FEDERAL): The Federal Government did just expand the child tax credit by $200 a year. ($16.66 a month) from $2,000 to $2,200. While a small improvement, it will not have the impact of the Expanded Child Tax Credit we saw after the pandemic where families received monthly payments. This effort saw nearly a 20% reduction in family food insecurity and most families used the money directly on food. Even Governor DeWine proposed an in-state child tax credit that would have invested $1,000 into families with children under 7. This state level investment paired with the school meal expansion could have notable impact on hungry Ohioans. All for the same price as a tax cut for households earning over $100,000 a year.
Fund Food Programs at their need requires (STATE): In this most recent state budget, the Ohio Association of Food banks and the Children’s Hunger Alliance were both cut. These public-private partnerships work directly with non-profits to have more healthy food available for those in need. They use public resources to amplify private giving and philanthropy with effectiveness and efficiency. Fully funding these programs in 2026 can reduce household food insecurity for children and others.
Childhood food insecurity can lead to learning and health barriers over the long-term. The effect of hunger among one or two students is spread through the classroom as their classmate struggles to keep focused and learn.
Children are often shielded from household food insecurity by parents sacrificing their meals first - leading parents to have health complications and additional struggles. Parents also are forced to buy less healthy options that are cheaper and provide that feeling of fullness for less. As America is concerned about healthy living, it comes down to a well-balanced diet full of vegetables, fruits, and proteins. When a household experiences food insecurity salts, sugars, and carbs replace what we really need.
If we want to ensure every child has a fair shot in the economy of tomorrow we must guarantee every child is fed today with healthy and nutritious food.
All we need to do to end childhood hunger is America is make it our top priority!