LANSING, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer recently promoted the free breakfast and lunch that the state has been providing since the pandemic.
“The students have spoken…Michigan’s free breakfast and lunch is GOOD,” Whitmer posted on her governor’s X account. “It’s helping students stay focused in class kind of GOOD, it’s saving parents $1,000 a year per kid kind of GOOD, and on top of it all, it tastes REALLY GOOD!”
The students have spoken…Michigan’s free breakfast and lunch is GOOD.
It’s helping students stay focused in class kind of GOOD, it’s saving parents $1,000 a year per kid kind of GOOD, and on top of it all, it tastes REALLY GOOD!
For the full video: https://t.co/J4goQ0jqFF pic.twitter.com/FbPcRyxH8p
— Governor Gretchen Whitmer (@GovWhitmer) December 8, 2025
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But Whitmer is inaccurate in saying the food is free.
The entire cost of the K-12 food operations is paid for by taxpayers. For Michigan the cost was $1.16 billion in 2024-25, according to the Senate Fiscal Agency. The federal government picked up $916.4 million of that tab.
The state has 1.42 million students and 180 scheduled class days a year.
