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Ensuring that children enter school at a healthy weight or maintain a healthy weight over the summer can be a challenge for Latino parents. Especially in states with large rural populations or in areas with poor transportation infrastructure.
In Colorado (21% Latino), only 1 in 10 eligible children visit a summer lunch site for free summer lunch. Lunch Lizard is Colorado’s eighth mobile summer food program in attempts to increase the percentage of low-income children that receive free summer meals.
When left to make do on their own during the summer, children go hungry or resort to quick, cheap and calorie-dense foods lacking in nutritional value; therefore, many children gain weight over the summer.
Mobile food trucks provide access to free, nutritious summer lunches for all children. Additionally, mobile food trucks provide free meals at more convenient locations, such as parks, pools, playgrounds, and apartment buildings. This is important for children living in rural areas, as well as children living in urban areas that lack access to transportation.
Click here for an interactive map to find free meals all summer long in Colorado.
Click here to read about changes Colorado has made to increase children’s participation in free summer meals.
By The Numbers
142
Percent
Expected rise in Latino cancer cases in coming years
