Marys Meals USA Inc
Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.
What it says it does
To raise donations to (i) provide a daily meal in a place of education for children in the world's poorest communities; (ii) occasionally provide relief for those suffering, in any part of the world, as a result of humanitarian crises (cont'd on Page 41) especially by providing care for orphaned, abandoned and vulnerable children; and (iii) raise awareness of poverty issues through education. MMUSA grants such donations at the discretion of its Board through Mary's Meals International, headquartered in Dalmally, Scotland, for specific country programs.
- Income
- $23.9 million
- Spending
- $23.6 million
- Spent on programs
- 96%
- Reserves
- 1.6 months of spending
- Largest source of income
- donations and private grants, 100%
- Employees
- 25
- Volunteers
- 2,346
- Highest pay
- $149,936, executive director
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Financial health
Good: 72 out of 100. Higher than 52% of charities in its peer group (international, $10m to $100m).
Reserves
10 of 35Spendable reserves would cover 1.6 months of spending.
Debt
20 of 20It owes 6% of what it owns.
Living within its means
12 of 15Income exceeded spending by 1% of income.
Income trend
15 of 15Income rose 2% on the year before.
Spending floor
15 of 1595% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 2 cents.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Governance
Strong: 100 out of 100. Higher than 35% of charities in its peer group (international, $10m to $100m).
Independent board
25 of 2510 of 10 voting board members are independent.
Conflict of interest policy
15 of 15Has a written conflict of interest policy.
Whistleblower policy
8 of 8Has a written whistleblower policy.
Record keeping policy
7 of 7Has a written policy on keeping and destroying records.
Board minutes
5 of 5Keeps minutes of board meetings.
Board sees the tax return
10 of 10Gave the board a copy of this return before filing it.
Pay set independently
5 of 5Sets its chief executive's pay through independent review and comparison.
Independent check of accounts
15 of 15Its accounts were audited by an independent accountant.
No reported misuse
10 of 10Reports no diversion of assets, excess benefits or loans to insiders.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Impact evidence
Describes programs. Its tax return describes what it does but we have found no measurable results in it.
Programs described in its return (2)
- $21.1 million spent. Mary's Meals International is a successful global movement that transforms the lives of children with a daily meal in a place of education in 16 of the world's poorest countries. Working collaboratively with local communities, Mary's Meals International establishes school feeding programs that draw children to schools, where they can receive an education that can be a path out of poverty. The Mary's Meals International program supports children but also has a positive impact on their households and communities.Sourcing food locally whenever possible, Mary's Meals International operates in some of the world's poorest, and most remote or conflict-ridden communities. The collaborative Mary's Meals school feeding program is particularly efficient and (cont'd on page 41) scalable, providing a cost-effective model that is a sustainable means to end child hunger. Mary's Meals USA provides grants to Mary's Meals International to fund the school feeding programs. In 2025, Mary's Meals USA marked 16 years of supporting Mary's Meals International's global feeding initiatives. While ensuring that 3 million children receive a nutritious meal every day in a place of education, Mary's Meals International also achieved some major milestones in its mission to fight child hunger and enable education. In the fall of 2025, our global school feeding programs reached 3 million children every school day, and we had the largest single year of growth in the history of our programs, driven by ambitious expansion plans. This was made possible thanks to grassroots giving, campaign appeals, volunteers and supporters worldwide.Across eight countries, programs were scaled up in Ethiopia, Haiti, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, South Sudan, Zambia, and Zimbabwe, to reach more than 650,000 additional children in over 1,300 schools. These expansions were essential in areas affected by hunger and disrupted education due to conflict, climate extremes, and political or economic instability. Additionally, an emergency appeal for drought affected Southern Africa, helped Mary's Meals to expand its school feeding programs across Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia, and Zimbabwe, which now sits at more than 2.1 million children. Following significant changes in Kenya, including government-led school feeding initiatives extending their reach and increased support from the Turkana County Government, a decision was made in 2025 to deliver our school feeding program entirely through our trusted local partner, Diocese of Lodwar. To support this transition, Diocese of Lodwar increased the number of Early Childhood Development and Education Centers (ECDEs) in Turkana where it delivers our school feeding program, to reach learners that were previously served by Mary's Meals Kenya. Additionally, Mary's Meals received significant global attention in 2025. In February, Founder and CEO Magnus MacFarlane Barrow was invited to speak at the Vatican's inaugural World Leaders Summit on Children's Rights in Rome. In April, the organization's documentary On the Frontlines of Hunger premiered at the Sarasota (FL) Film Festival and was later screened at Westminster and London's Frontline Club as part of the 40th anniversary of Live Aid, amplifying the voices of communities in Tigray, Ethiopia affected by conflict and climate shocks.Mary's Meals received an official invitation to participate in activities during the Youth Jubilee in Rome in the summer. A prayer vigil presided over by Pope Leo XIV at Tor Vergata was a highlight, with Mary's Meals Youth Ambassadors presenting our work to the vast crowd ahead of the Pope's appearance. Three well-known Catholic singers also performed live on stage as Mary's Meals representatives. Mary's Meals International school feeding model continues to be an effective solution for addressing global hunger as highlighted in our annual Impact Reports, which can be found on our website, www.marysmealsusa.org . Throughout 2024, Mary's Meals tracked child-focused indicators in the four program countries where the organization directly implements school feeding Kenya, Liberia, Malawi, and Zambia. Across these four countries, Mary's Meals surveyed teachers and children about the impacts of daily school meals on reducing hunger, as well as improving school attendance, participation, and progression through school.Key findings from the study demonstrate the positive impact of the Mary's Meals International school feeding program: Across our expanded programs, school meals increased enrollment by 10%. The average monthly school attendance was 89% 98% of children reported improved concentration after eating a school meal. Over the course of the year, we served more than 400,883,000 meals across 91% of school days, while achieving gender parity for another consecutive year. 100% of teachers stated that the school feeding program has had a positive impact on the quality of education this year, including improvements in attendance, participation, focus and lesson retention, pass rate, and a reduction in sickness and absenteeism. New in the 2024 Impact Report was the addition of data collected from children and teachers to understand program effects in post conflict settings. The study found that reintroducing school feeding in post-conflict Tigray, Ethiopia, strengthened routines, social interaction, and classroom participation, while fostering more peaceful settings.The positive impact of feeding children in a place of learning has also been recognized by the United Nations. In 2023, the United Nations added school meals as an official indicator under Sustainable Development Goal 4: Quality Education, signaling global recognition of school meals as a key intervention to improve access to education and effective learning environments for children.Mary's Meals International works in countries that faced a variety of significant issues including conflict, the effects of climate change and increasing costs of food. Combined, these challenges nega
- $1.4 million spent. Mary's Meals USA also focuses on education and awareness raising programs in the US on the impact of child hunger and the importance of school feeding programs. This awareness-raising program portion of the work allows the opportunity for more US volunteers to join Mary's Meals and become advocates for children in poverty. Staff and volunteers visit schools, groups, and organizations to give presentations about the work of Mary's Meals. Mary's Meals USA provides documentary films, brochures, and other materials to support these efforts. Regular emails and letters are sent to those who have requested updates so the information can be shared in their communities.Over the course of 2025, (cont'd on page 43) some of Mary's Meals USA awareness activities included: The 12th Annual Race to Feed Children in Des Moines, IA Annual Concerts to Benefit Mary's Meals in Iowa & Missouri Annual Summer Concert Series across multiple Iowa sites by performer Steve Angrisano Founder, Magnus MacFarlane-Barrow spoke in Kentucky and Ohio, with events that included accompanying activities to engage a wider audience in the mission. The 2nd Annual Concert for a Cause in Columbus, OH The 1st Sound of Hope Christmas Festival in Dallas, TX
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Legitimacy checks
Is it registered with the IRS? Passed.
Listed in the IRS master file of tax-exempt organizations as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 2026.
Has the IRS revoked its tax-exempt status? Passed.
Not on the IRS automatic revocation list.
Source: Automatic revocation of exemption list, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 30, 2026.
Are donations tax-deductible? Passed.
On the IRS list of organizations eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions.
Source: Publication 78 data: organizations eligible for tax-deductible contributions, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 10, 2026.
Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Passed.
Most recent return on file covers the year ending December 2025.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 2026.
How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.
Recognized by the IRS since November 2008.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 2026.
Is it in good standing with state regulators? Passed.
Not on California's list of charities barred from soliciting. Other states are not yet checked.
Source: May Not Operate or Solicit for Charitable Purposes list, California Attorney General, Registry of Charities and Fundraisers, file dated October 7, 2026.
Ratings and checks are our reading of public records, using the published method. They are not a statement about anyone's honesty. If you work for this organization, you can send corrections or results, confirm you want gifts through Veridonate, or ask to be removed from giving.