Fueling Free School Lunches
Every school day, American public schools serve lunch to 28.6 million kids. 19 million of these lunches are free, while another 1.1 million reduced price lunches cost only 40 cents. For kids from families that have a hard time putting food on the table, free or reduced lunches can be a lifeline. Natural gas plays a surprising role in making these lunches (and often breakfasts) happen while keeping them affordable.
According to P3 Cost Analysts citing U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) data, the average American public school spends 67 cents per square foot on electricity and only 19 cents per square foot on natural gas. Per their analysis, space heating, lighting, and water heating make up between 74% and 86% of their total energy usage.
Natural gas is on average the most cost-effective method for space and water heating. The EIA projects that natural gas will remain one-third to one-half the cost of other fuels, including electricity, which is projected to remain the most expensive option, through at least 2050. Today, natural gas is 3.3 times more affordable than electricity, roughly in line with the lower end of the EIA forecast for 2050 costs. The affordability of natural gas compared to electricity has saved commercial and industrial customers (including public schools) more than half a trillion dollars ($500,000,000,000) over the past decade.
By using natural gas for cooking, space and water heating, schools can make the most of their budgets. The prevalence and low cost of natural gas has helped keep energy spending between 2% and 4% of the average school’s total spending. That means that money can be spent elsewhere – whether on higher salaries for teachers, more classroom resources, or more nutritious food in the cafeteria.
The quality of the food itself also greatly benefits from natural gas. Look at the graph below from Purdue University showing American corn yields per acre:
See those yellow dots that make up the flat line? That’s what productivity per acre was for about as long as we’ve had agriculture. It’s why in 1900, the average American spent 42.5% of their income just on food – with that food constituting a dramatically poorer diet than you’re used to. The discovery of the Haber-Bosch process in the early 1900s made it possible to turn natural gas into synthetic fertilizer and sent agricultural productivity skyrocketing. Because of natural gas, the American agriculture sector contributes $437 billion to U.S. GDP each year while keeping food prices far lower than they would otherwise be. The average American now spends 7.2% of their income on food, and public schools can provide lunches at an average cost to the school of $3.81 per lunch, or about 49 cents more than the $3.32 federal free lunch subsidy.
More and better food makes a huge difference for students. Feeding hungry kids is good and worth doing for its own merits. However, both the students and society at large see real, tangible benefits of free and reduced-price lunch programs. Kids who’ve eaten properly perform better academically, with universal free meal programs shown to increase academic performance
Affordable natural gas is saving schools money, letting them spend less on energy and more on their students. The students, the schools, and society at large are all better off for it.