Amazon and No Kid Hungry Deliver More Than 2 Million Meals to Families in Rural Communities This Summer

Amazon and No Kid Hungry tested a home-delivered summer meal model to reach rural families who cannot easily access traditional meal sites.

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09/17/2026 - 09:30 AM

The Summer Meals for Kids pilot provided free home delivery of more than 2 million meals across 13 states, helping families in rural communities overcome barriers to accessing summer nutrition.

SEATTLE--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Amazon and No Kid Hungry today announced results from its Summer Meals for Kids pilot program which delivered more than 2 million meals to families in rural communities across the U.S. this summer.

Operating under the USDA's Summer Food Service Program, the program combines No Kid Hungry's expertise in childhood hunger and summer nutrition with Amazon's rural delivery network to reach families who face barriers to accessing traditional summer meal sites that provide free meals for kids on-site. The pilot ran from May through August 2026, spanned 18 local food bank and school district partners across 13 states, and delivered more than 2 million meals directly to families' doorsteps.

“Amazon's delivery network already reaches some of the most remote communities in America every single day,” said Kadie Newman, vice president of transportation services at Amazon. “Working alongside No Kid Hungry and local food banks and school districts, we're applying that same last-mile infrastructure to help close the summer hunger gap — providing free delivery to get meals directly to kids who might otherwise go without.”

Together, Amazon and No Kid Hungry are helping address a critical last-mile challenge in summer nutrition — removing the transportation barrier entirely and reaching more children with nutrition by bringing meals to families where they are.

Helping More Children Access Summer Meals

For many children, school meals are a lifeline — ensuring reliable access to nutrition during the school year. When schools close for the summer, that access disappears. Nearly 30 million children in the U.S. rely on free breakfast and lunch during the school year, but only about 1 in 7 eligible children are able to access traditional onsite summer meal programs. For families in rural communities, the challenge can be even greater: long travel distances, meal sites sparsely located, limited and costly transportation, and schedule constraints for working parents and caregivers can make reaching a site nearly impossible. In some rural counties, child food insecurity rates approach 50%.

“We've heard from rural families across the country that they value the convenience and nutrition that home delivery could offer in the summer,” said Courtney Smith, senior vice president of program research, innovation, and impact at No Kid Hungry. “That's why we are working with Amazon to pioneer a home delivery model designed to reach rural families where they are.”

How the Program Works

Local food banks and school district pilot partners identify eligible families, source nutritious shelf-stable food, and prepare meal boxes at their facilities. Families self-enroll through an online form and receive shelf-stable breakfasts and lunches for children ages 1–18, delivered to their doorstep — typically within 24 to 72 hours. Amazon provides transportation and delivery at no cost to participating partners or families. Families can track the boxes as they make their way to their doorstep.

“During the school year, we serve 5,500 meals a day — but in the summer, we only reach about 200. Our schools aren't in the neighborhoods where kids live, and it simply wasn't possible for them to get to us. This program changed that,” said Jean Kinder, school nutrition director at Quincy Public Schools. “Over 1,500 families signed up, and together with Amazon, we delivered nearly 200,000 meals this summer.”

This program builds on Amazon's long-standing commitment to expanding access to food in communities. Since 2020, Amazon has delivered more than 60 million meals from food banks to families' homes across the U.S. and United Kingdom. In 2025, the company extended its commitment to provide free home delivery services for food bank partners through 2028.

About Amazon

Amazon is guided by four principles: customer obsession rather than competitor focus, passion for invention, commitment to operational excellence, and long-term thinking. Amazon strives to be Earth’s Most Customer-Centric Company, Earth’s Best Employer, and Earth’s Safest Place to Work. Customer reviews, 1-Click shopping, personalized recommendations, Prime, Fulfillment by Amazon, AWS, Kindle Direct Publishing, Kindle, Career Choice, Fire tablets, Fire TV, Amazon Echo, Alexa, Just Walk Out technology, Amazon Studios, and The Climate Pledge are some of the things pioneered by Amazon. For more information, visit amazon.com/about and follow @AmazonNews.

About No Kid Hungry

No child should go hungry in America. But millions of kids in the United States live with hunger. No Kid Hungry is working to end childhood hunger by helping launch and improve programs that give all kids the healthy food they need to thrive. This is a problem we know how to solve. No Kid Hungry is a campaign of Share Our Strength, an organization committed to ending hunger and poverty. Join us at NoKidHungry.org.