Songpa-gu Increases Meal Cost for Children at Risk of Food Insecurity from 8,000 to 9,000 Won

Songpa-gu Raises Meal Allowance for Children at Risk of Food Insecurity to the Highest Level Nationwide... Expands Usage Locations for Meal Cards

From August 1, Child Meal Card Allowance Increased from 8,000 KRW to 9,000 KRW

Expansion of Affiliated Stores Including Side Dish Shops and Grocery Stores... Leading Efforts to Improve Nutritional Imbalance

Seogangseok, Mayor of Songpa District

Songpa-gu (Mayor Seo Gang-seok) recently announced that considering the rapid rise in inflation and the average price of dining out, the child meal card allowance will be increased from 8,000 KRW to 9,000 KRW starting August 1.

The child meal card program provides meal expenses to children under 18 years old from low-income families who are at risk of missing meals due to circumstances such as guardians going to work or illness, currently supporting 1,365 children in Songpa-gu.

According to Seoul city price information, the average dining-out cost is around 8,000 to 9,000 KRW, limiting the menu options available with the existing child meal allowance at restaurants, raising concerns about nutritional imbalance among children.

In response to the rapidly rising prices, Songpa-gu will promptly increase the child meal support allowance to 9,000 KRW, the highest level nationwide, by allocating additional district budget to enable children at risk of food insecurity to have more nutritious meals.

From August 1, children using the Songpa-gu meal card will be able to freely choose meals within a daily limit of 27,000 KRW at 5,218 Shinhan Card affiliated stores within Songpa-gu, including restaurants.

Additionally, the district will operate a ‘Child Meal Card Intensive Application Period’ from July 3 to July 20 to identify as many eligible children as possible before the summer vacation when school meals are suspended, ensuring no vulnerable children go hungry.

Previously, the district expanded the usage locations of the child meal card to side dish shops and grocery stores to help children at risk of food insecurity have more balanced meals. Since February this year, affiliated stores include three newly added side dish shops, one meal kit specialty store, as well as various businesses such as Korean, Western, Chinese restaurants, and bakeries.

Seo Gang-seok, Mayor of Songpa-gu, stated, “By increasing the meal allowance, we will broaden the choices for children at risk of food insecurity and support their healthy growth through high-quality and nutritious meals. Moving forward, we will continue to prioritize socially vulnerable groups such as low-income children and develop projects to create an inclusive city Songpa where no one is left behind.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.