Florida’s families now have new ways to find free healthy meals for their children this summer now that school is out.
The 2014 Summer BreakSpot program, led by Florida’s agriculture commissioner Adam Putnam, offers meals, recreation and educational activities for children 18 and younger at 3,400 locations statewide during the summer.
This year, the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services is modernizing access by allowing families to locate nearby meal sites four different ways by:
• Dialing 211
• Texting “FoodFL” to 877-877
• Downloading the Nutrislice smartphone app
• Visiting SummerFoodFlorida.org
“We want kids across Florida to eat healthy, wholesome food throughout the school year and all summer long,” Putnam said, in a release. “This program helps ensure children have access to healthy meals during the summer, along with enrichment activities and time with their friends, so they are ready to learn in the fall when school is back in session.”
Last year, the program provided more than 12 million meals to about 300,000 children, continuing the increase in summer meals the state has seen since the agriculture department took over the school nutrition program in 2011.
Florida has ramped up participation in the program by nearly 12 percent between 2012 and 2013.
Summer BreakSpot is part of the national Summer Food Service Program, a federally funded program operated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and administered in Florida by the agriculture department.
Eligible sponsors — including nonprofit organizations, schools, churches, camps and local governments — serve meals and snacks free to low income children under the age of 18 during the summer months.
