Nourish students with fresh vegetable & protein lunches for P2.50

nourishing kids' minds and stomachs

The 5¢ School Lunch is ARK's award-winning keystone program, and for good reason: it keeps kids in school by making it affordable and beneficial for parents to feed them there. Many rural kids go to school hungry, are malnourished, and drop out to find work. As of 2015, there were 264 million school-age kids that are out of school (UNESCO).

The 5¢ School Lunch provides fresh vegetable and protein lunches to all students, every day class is in session, but it's much, much more than a feeding program. By creating a community-based food system where produce is grown in the school garden and parents' backyards, the 5¢ School Lunch breaks the cycle of hunger and poverty for kids, parent-volunteers, and teachers–transforming entire communities.

IT TAKES A VILLAGE

For a truly sustainable hunger solution, we asked communities for a school lunch cost that they could afford every day.

At only 5¢ (Php 2.50), ARK's School Lunch costs 1/10th of the cost of the largest state-funded lunches in the world. How? Parents and teachers give big. Without their contribution, the 5¢ School Lunch would be triple the cost.

PARENTS

GIVE
(and later, sell) produce and meat from their backyards to the program

PARENTS VOLUNTEER
to make the lunch

TEACHERS VOLUNTEER
to manage the program

PARENTS

PAY
for their kid's school lunches

subsidized value of the lunch:

1x

0.45x

0.5x

+

?

= 2x

Ayesha math?

everyone loves it

FOR THE FIRST TIME:

kids are enjoying eating vegetables

ARK creates a whole new economy that brings much needed income and a sustainable source of food for the community. The program purchases 100% of school lunch ingredients from the community, nearly 90% from parents.

in the Philippines, parents save as much as P3,500 per kid/year and make over P87,000 of new income every year

teachers have a chance to lead innovative projects, get recognized and promoted, and access ARK’s Scholarship Program

communities have new energy and life, and collaborate with partners from around the world on their dream projects

the tangible results

95%

70%

kids are bright and curious
do better in class and aptitude tests

attendance

30%

0%

malnutrition

50/50 partnership

We partner 50/50 with communities who dream of the same goals and outcomes. In our 50/50 approach, communities inspire and draw us into their village by investing in themselves and leading the execution of the solution. For the 5¢ School Lunch, the community creates the school gardens, water sources and kitchens using their own funds and time. The ARK Lunch allows communities to secure their food, schooling and income for life in just three years.