New Research from HelloFresh Sounds the Alarm on Rising Student Hunger Ahead of Spring Break

HelloFresh, the world’s leading meal kit provider, and No Kid Hungry, a campaign focused on ending childhood hunger, announced today striking new research from America’s teachers and a new campaign, called No Breaks for Hunger, to raise awareness of and help address the urgent issue of student hunger, especially during school breaks.

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For many kids across the US, March and April mark spring break—a time that should be reserved for fun and a much-deserved break from learning. However, for a staggering number of kids who rely on in-school meals, school breaks are characterized by worry over where their next meal is coming from. This issue is particularly urgent for the nearly 14 million kids who live in households facing food insecurity, meaning they do not have access to enough food for every family member to lead a healthy life.

Teachers are on the front lines of the fight against childhood hunger, helping students get access to food and referring families to resources. Far too often, they witness the devastating effects of hunger on students firsthand, such as difficulty concentrating and lower academic performance. Recognizing that K-12 teachers have unique insights into the issue of childhood hunger, HelloFresh commissioned Hunger Matters for Students, a nationally representative survey of American teachers. Key findings include:

• Teachers regularly see kids come to school hungry: Nearly eight in 10 (78%) teachers said they were concerned about food insecurity in the communities where they teach. Three in five teachers (61%) know firsthand that their students are experiencing hunger, with more than half (54%) seeing kids come to school hungry a few times a week or more.
• Many teachers worry about their students’ ability to access nutritious meals when they are not in school: Nine out of 10 teachers (89%) are concerned about students generally having enough to eat during school breaks. And nearly three-quarters (74%) said that, during school breaks, they worry about their student’s ability to access nutritious meals specifically.
• Most teachers have personally taken action to address student hunger: Almost all (92%) of teachers have taken steps to address the problem of their students’ hunger. Almost half (49%) personally provide students with food in the classroom, and more than one-quarter (29%) have bought food for students to eat outside of the classroom. Among these teachers, 78% have spent up to $100 per month of their own money.
• The majority of teachers would like action to be taken: 85% of teachers agreed they would like to see more done about the current state of hunger for K-12 students.

”With the rising cost of everyday essentials, like rent and food, it’s evident that many families are struggling—and that means their kids are too,” said Jeffrey Yorzyk, senior director of sustainability at HelloFresh. “These troubling insights from America’s teachers make one thing clear: It’s time to act with urgency. That’s why we’re proud to continue our partnership with No Kid Hungry to address this serious and growing issue and do our part to help kids to thrive in school and at home.”

This spring break, HelloFresh is taking action to support the teachers who are going above and beyond to help their hungry students and to ease the burden placed on these students’ families during school breaks. In partnership with local nonprofits and public school districts, HelloFresh will support students and families with free meal kits featuring wholesome, family-friendly recipes ahead of spring break in Brooklyn, NY; Newark, NJ; and Buckeye, AZ.

Nationwide, HelloFresh is encouraging families to apply for LimeAid grants, which offer 12 weeks of free meal kits. Because teachers see the impact of hunger firsthand, HelloFresh also is calling on educators to nominate students’ families in need and, in turn, enter for a chance to win a gift card for classroom supplies and resources.

“Teachers are sounding the alarm; the current state of child hunger is unacceptable,” said Allison Shuffield, managing director of corporate partnerships at Share Our Strength, the organization behind the No Kid Hungry campaign. “These findings really show the extent of the child hunger crisis in America and how it’s keeping kids from reaching their full potential. With the support of partners like HelloFresh, we are committed to working across sectors to strengthen and protect programs that ensure kids get the nutrition they need all year round.”

Last year, HelloFresh and No Kid Hungry worked together to address the summer hunger gap through the 13 for 13 Million campaign, an effort to raise awareness of the issue and provide critical support to parents and families in need. With the help of trusted partners, HelloFresh hosted distribution events and pop-up pantries in 13 regions across the country and pointed families to critical resources, like summer EBT benefits.

To learn more about how HelloFresh and No Kid Hungry are fighting childhood food insecurity and to join in the action, please visit hellofresh.com/pages/nokidhungry.

ABOUT HELLOFRESH
HelloFresh is the world’s leading meal-kit company, providing customers with fresh, high-quality ingredients to cook delicious meals at home. By delivering pre-portioned ingredients and easy-to-follow recipes directly to customers' doors, HelloFresh helps busy individuals and families enjoy home-cooked meals without the hassle of meal planning and grocery shopping. HelloFresh was voted the Most Trusted Meal Kit Delivery Service in America from 2021 through 2023 by Newsweek. For more information, visit www.hellofresh.com or follow HelloFresh on Facebook, X, Instagram, or TikTok.

ABOUT HELLOFRESH GROUP
The HelloFresh Group is a global food solutions group and the world's leading meal kit provider. The HelloFresh Group consists of eight brands that provide customers with high quality food and recipes for different meal occasions including HelloFresh, Green Chef, EveryPlate, Chefs Plate, Factor, Youfoodz, The Pets Table and Good Chop. The Company was founded in Berlin in November 2011 and operates in the USA, the UK, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Australia, Austria, Switzerland, Canada, New Zealand, Sweden, France, Denmark, Norway, Italy, Ireland and Spain. In Q1 2024 HelloFresh Group delivered over 272 million meals globally. HelloFresh SE went public on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange in November 2017 and is currently traded on the MDAX (Mid-Cap German Stock Market Index). For more information, visit www.hellofreshgroup.com.

ABOUT NO KID HUNGRY
No child should go hungry in America. But millions of kids in the United States live with hunger. No Kid Hungry is working to end childhood hunger by helping launch and improve programs that give all kids the healthy food they need to thrive. This is a problem we know how to solve. No Kid Hungry is a campaign of Share Our Strength, an organization committed to ending hunger and poverty.

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