How Did School Feeding Become a Global Policy Instrument?

In recent decades, School Feeding Programs (SFPs) have increasingly aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), especially in food security, education, and social protection.In its early days, the program provided emergency aid after World War II, serving food to all children who suffered from physical growth retardation, malnutrition, and starvation due to inadequate food supplies in countries involved in the war.Now, SFPs function as highly strategic state policy instruments that help regions achieve SDG values.In this study, the authors trace publication performance, intellectual evolution, and knowledge structure in SFPs research using Bibliometrix RStudio software.The analysis draws on 1332 Scopus-indexed documents covering 1936-2025.SFP studies have progressed steadily, with an average annual growth rate of 5.47%.A rapid surge emerged only after 2010, peaking in 2025, with the United States dominating the knowledge channel.The field has shifted focus from basic nutrition and calorie sufficiency into three prominent streams: the impact stream, the operational stream, and the socio-political stream.SFPs now form a multisectoral policy ecosystem, connecting local farmers through the Home Grown School Feeding (HGSF) model with sustainable food systems.