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Children in some of India's poorest families may be missing out on free school meals because the scheme does not match parents' aspirations for their futures, new research has revealed.

The study into the world's largest school feeding program, India's Mid-day Meal Scheme (MDMS), found that free school meals remain a vital source of support, particularly for families experiencing acute hardship. But, it found, their value cannot be understood through nutrition and school attendance alone, and the scheme must be reframed if it is to be taken up more widely.

The study , by the Food Security for Equitable Futures research team at Lancaster University and the Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, found the scheme's ability to reach and support children is shaped by factors extending well beyond the meal itself, including perceptions of school quality, the costs of schooling, household labor needs and the social meanings attached to receiving free food.

Introduced three…