Free Meals in Many Schools, and More to Come

To help child-rearing households reduce their financial burdens, 722 Japanese municipalities are offering free school lunches, prompting the government to seriously consider implementing a free-of-charge school lunch system nationwide.

So far, 722 – or 43% – of Japanese municipalities have a free-of-charge school lunch system. Of them, 547 municipalities offer free lunches at all elementary and junior high schools, a significant rise from 76 in 2017.

In 145 municipalities, free school meals are offered to households with three or more children. As of May 2023, 98.8% of all elementary schools and 89.8% of all junior high schools in Japan offered free meals. The average monthly lunch fee was $29.06 for elementary schools and $33.27 for junior high schools. According to the ministry, providing free school lunches across the country, if the average lunch fee were applied to national and private schools alike, would cost $3.16 billion annually.