Earlier this month, School Board members approved slightly higher lunch prices that district Chief of Operations Kevin Alston says are in order to meet federal regulations.

After a 5-cent increase across the board, elementary and secondary paid lunches will increase to $1.60 and $1.75, respectively, in the new school year.

Federal regulations mean school districts participating in the National School Lunch Program must raise the cost of paid lunches to match the government’s free-lunch reimbursement rate, according to Alston.

For the same reason, prices are set to increase again for 2015-2016, Alston said.

Suffolk’s prices remain the second lowest among nine Tidewater districts, he noted.