Toronto will provide a free meal to every student attending a public school when the new academic year begins in early September 2026. The city’s school food program, which already serves a portion of the student body, is being broadened to cover all 325,000 public school pupils across the municipality.
The expansion marks a shift from the program’s earlier configuration, which was limited to selected schools that qualified under specific criteria. Under the new arrangement, no public school will be excluded, ensuring that every child enrolled in the city’s public system receives at least one nutritious meal each school day.
City officials say the decision follows a review of the program’s reach and the growing recognition of food insecurity among school‑age children. By extending the service to all schools, the municipality aims to create a uniform safety net that supports students’ health and learning outcomes regardless of their neighbourhood or household income.
Implementation will begin as schools reopen for the fall term, with the existing infrastructure of kitchen staff, catering partners and distribution logistics being scaled up to meet the larger demand. The move aligns Toronto with other major Canadian cities that have adopted universal free‑meal policies for public education, reflecting a broader trend toward addressing child nutrition at the municipal level.