Schools and nonprofits are trying to feed West Virginia’s children this summer, despite rising food prices and welfare changes

The air in the school gym smelled of homemade cookies.

Kanawha County Schools chef Marsha Burns spent the morning at Elk Center Elementary in Charleston, West Virginia, baking cookies with a up-to-date white wheat flour made in West Virginia. She also added a crispy sausage patty from a local meat supplier.

Later, dozens of children rushed to the kitchen to fill their trays with breakfast foods as part of a free summer program run by the county school system.

“Often this is the only time these children eat,” Burns said June 10.

West Virginia has one of the nation the highest child hunger rates and one in five Children suffer from lack of food. Most districts offer free breakfast and lunch to all students during the school year.

This summer brings added stress to families trying to keep food on the table without the aid of school meal programs. Food prices rose 2.9% in April compared to the same month last year, according to Government figures published in May. Fruits and vegetables saw some of the biggest price increases.

The West Virginia Department of Education is working with local partners this summer to ensure this happens nationwide feeding stations for anyone 18 and under who is working to put together nutritious meals while managing rising food costs. This is made possible through funding from the US Department of Agriculture.

“It’s really gone up quite a bit, but we’re trying to give the kids what they don’t even get at home,” said Lori Lanier, child nutrition specialist for Kanawha County Schools.

In one Press releaseSuperintendent of Public Schools Michele Blatt said meals will be readily available throughout West Virginia this summer. “This validation is more important now than ever,” she said.

Changes to the food assistance program are likely to impact children

President Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act, once signed into law, is also expected to impact child hunger in West Virginia Changes in food aid for 36,000 low-income West Virginia residents. Enrollments in the state’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program fell by 5.7% between entry into force and February 2026 since the implementation of the Megabill.

West Virginia children have been automatically enrolled in school during the COVID-19 pandemic Summer EBT Program that gives money for food. Now, automatic eligibility is tied to participation in federal anti-poverty programs or Medicaid. All others must submit an application.

“Summer EBT has been a critical tool for putting food on families’ tables during the summer when school meals are not available. The cuts Congress made to SNAP last summer as part of the One Big Beautiful Bill mean that the Summer EBT program will reach fewer children in West Virginia this year.” said Kelly Allen, executive director of the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy.

Across the state, summer feeding programs are preparing for increased demand.

In Preston County, 700 children have signed up to receive free meals this summer. The county’s summer meal program will offer grab-and-go meal boxes, each containing 10 breakfasts and 10 lunches.

“We have seen an increase in need,” he said Justin Hough, director of nutrition for Preston County Schools. He said even if families receive federal food assistance, the current inflation rate “doesn’t mean they’ll be able to make up for all the lost meals they would rely on during the school year.”

The Lincoln County Family Support Center’s Big Ugly Community Center in Harts expects to provide balmy meals to dozens of local students for eight weeks this summer. The center sends students home with a backpack filled with nonperishable food to feed them over the weekends.

“It’s very critical. It’s their source because they don’t have it,” said Candy Vannatter, site manager at Big Ugly Community Center. The center’s pantry is also serving more and more people.

Senate Minority Leader Mike Woelfel is concerned about children’s access to food in the summer and has been trying for years to persuade the Legislature to create a “Summer Food for All” program.

The measure did not require counties to establish summer feeding programs, but Woelfel wanted counties to work to determine the number of hungry children to aid local resources meet the need.

The bill passed the Senate in 2023, 2024 and 2025 but was not taken up by the House of Representatives. This year, Woelfel’s legislation failed in the Republican-led Senate Finance Committee. The bill had no cost but was referred to that committee before it could come to a vote.

“I’m just disappointed,” said Woelfel, D-Cabell. “We spent more time in the Senate passing a bill to force the State Police to sell hundreds of machine guns to West Virginians than we did with this bill.”

Wolfel is retiring this year after more than a decade in the Senate. He hopes other senators will support the bill next year.

“There are so many people in the Legislature who always want to use the word, and I put it in quotes, ‘Christian,’ but I know a few senators who have told me privately that the government is not responsible for taking care of anyone’s children, so that’s the greatest of the great ironies in this place,” Woelfel said. “If you don’t see feeding hungry children as a priority, that seems to say a lot about you.”

Preparing children’s meals amid rising food prices

Hough said federal reimbursement rates for groceries during the summer “aren’t quite keeping up with the rate of inflation.”

“At least we were very fortunate that our contract with our grocer can only increase up to a certain amount over the course of the contract, so we were able to offset some of our costs a little bit,” he said, adding that a $9,000 grant from No Kid Hungry is helping offset the costs. “But definitely we have to get a lot more creative with our meals and our eating patterns to try to stay within budget.”

Diane Miller, executive director of child nutrition for Kanawha County Schools, said their budget has increased 15% for regular food costs because they operate 15 feeding sites for children 18 and under.

“We really need to refocus if we want to spend our money wisely,” she said. “We focus on the quality items I can find, but most importantly I’m trying to figure out if we can use less paper or find an alternative when we’re out and about.”

Miller plans to exploit lots of locally produced meats and vegetables like potatoes and green beans; The chefs have been helpful in learning up-to-date recipes using local produce, she said.

“We only have success when students are involved, having fun and actually helping me choose what they want to see in meals,” Miller said. “These programs are here now to help you spend your money a little more.”