The Minnesota Office of the Legislative Auditor found that inadequate oversight by the Minnesota Department of Education allowed Feeding Our Future’s funding to surge from $1.4 million in 2019 to $140.3 million in 2021 — a 2,818% increase. Flawed approvals and uninvestigated complaints let the nonprofit expand while capturing nearly 40% of federal meal dollars to Minnesota nonprofit sponsors in 2021. The case, now the largest COVID-era fraud investigation in the U.S., means additional taxpayer costs as the state cleans up after systemic failures.
How Feeding Our Future Exploited Minnesota’s Pandemic Meal Program — A 2,818% Surge That Went Unchecked
During a 2022 press briefing, U.S. Attorney Andrew Luger outlined federal charges against 47 people accused of participating in a $250 million Feeding Our Future fraud scheme.
What happened: Payments to the nonprofit Feeding Our Future exploded during the COVID-19 pandemic after the organization tapped into federally funded child nutrition programs administered by the Minnesota Department of Education (MDE). State audit data show the nonprofit’s funding jumped from $1.4 million in 2019 to $140.3 million in 2021 — a 2,818% increase — and has become the largest COVID-era fraud case in the nation.
Audit Findings and How the Scheme Grew
Data compiled by the Minnesota Office of the Legislative Auditor reveals that MDE oversight was seriously deficient. The auditor concluded MDE’s supervision was “inadequate” and that those shortcomings "created opportunities for fraud." State payment records chart a pattern of dramatic growth that went largely unchecked.
Per the audit: payments to Feeding Our Future were $1.4 million in 2019, rose to $4.8 million in 2020, and ballooned to $140.3 million in 2021. Even before the pandemic, the organization was an outlier: by the end of 2019 it sponsored more than six times the number of Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) sites than comparable sponsors.
Red Flags Ignored
Several operational failures allowed the scheme to expand. Flawed applications were approved, formal complaints were not investigated, and the nonprofit continued to add sites despite repeated warning signs. When federal nutrition funding surged during COVID-19, Feeding Our Future’s growth far outpaced peers; in 2021 nearly four of every 10 dollars sent to nonprofit meal sponsors in Minnesota went to this single organization.
Office of the Legislative Auditor: MDE’s oversight was "inadequate" and "created opportunities for fraud."
Broader Consequences
The fallout extends beyond the immediate fraud. Minnesota taxpayers now face an expensive state-level cleanup after a separate, years-long $250 million welfare fraud scheme — effectively paying to fix failures that state officials missed. Governor Tim Walz has acknowledged ultimate responsibility for failures that occurred under his administration.
Why it matters: The case highlights vulnerabilities in federally funded nutrition programs and the importance of timely, rigorous oversight to protect taxpayer dollars and services for low-income children.
