Universal Free Lunch: Why Not New Hampshire?

School lunch is an essential component of students’ lives. Spending an average of 6.8 hours a day at school (World Population Review, 2025), students need food to fuel their learning. Along with many other states across the nation, most New Hampshire schools participate in the National School Lunch Program (NH DOE, 2025). This program provides federal reimbursements to schools for students who qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. The current eligibility requirements for free meals require students to come from households with an annual income at or below 130 percent of the poverty level, which is $41,795 for a family of two adults and two children (USDA, 2025–26 guidelines). For reduced-price meals, incomes must be at or below 185 percent of the poverty level ($59,478 for a family of four) (ibid). Families with incomes above this threshold pay full price. 

Across all New Hampshire districts, an average of 23 percent of kids were eligible for free or reduced-price meals during the 2025–26 school year (NH DOE, 2026). However, in pockets of both rural and urban New Hampshire, rates far exceed the average. For example, 56 percent of students in the city of Manchester were eligible for free and reduced-price lunch, and 68 percent of students in the small town of Stewartstown in northern New Hampshire were eligible. Seabrook also had a significant share of students eligible at 51 percent (ibid). While these are important data points, the percentages represent only families who submitted applications.

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