Brazilian school feeding during the COVID-19 pandemic

Ana Carla Bittencourt Reis; Mara Lúcia Castilho; Ana Paula Melo  Mariano; Edilson de Souza Bias

doi:10.1590/SciELOPreprints.791

##article.authors##

Ana Carla Bittencourt Reis University of Brasilia https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2141-8997
Mara Lúcia Castilho Federal Institute of Brasilia https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8467-447X
Ana Paula Melo Mariano State University of Santa Cruz https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3177-7790
Edilson de Souza Bias University of Brasilia https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0334-0476

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1590/SciELOPreprints.791

Keywords:

School feeding, Monitoring , COVID-19, Food programs, School closure

Abstract

School feeding is part of for million students' routine worldwide. Schools' closure during the COVID-19 pandemic brought to the fore the challenge of providing food for children and adolescents by alternative means, through food programs, whether governmental or otherwise. In Brazil, approximately 40.1 [1] million children and adolescents enrolled in basic public education were affected and went without their daily meal during this period. To provide them food, most local governments chose to transfer financial resources to their parents. The challenge of knowing if children are receiving these meals adequately during school closures, which can be lengthy, is the target of this study. The current situation in the 27 Brazilian federated entities regarding the transfer of funds and delivery of meals is presented herein. A monitoring model is proposed for children and adolescents to be followed during the pandemic, in order to guarantee their adequate nutrition.