Debates rage on about how to reopen our schools and colleges in light of the ever-changing COVID-19 surges. When talking about the children of our country, our emotions are at their peak. So many contentious issues, our children’s safety, loss of learning vs. a loss of life, federal funds going to all students at private schools and, feeding the 31 million children effectively who eat free or reduced-price school lunch (the National School Lunch Program), to name a few.

As there is no clear-cut course of action from our federal leadership on safely opening schools, it is up to governors, county leaders, school district leaders, and hopefully the much-needed voices of parents and teachers. The downright daunting choices are: to open up full-time; to use remote learning effectively; to adapt a hybrid schedule that includes in-person and online courses; and pandemic pods (this is a whole other blog topic!) The dogged days of summer roll-on and school calendars tick closer to their start dates. Let’s focus on feeding students here.

Schools served more than 5.2 billion lunches in the fiscal year 2019. This does not include providing meals through the school breakfast program, after school snack programs and, in many districts all over our country, a dinner program. That is a lot of food being manufactured.

This year it appears many school districts will not even try to reopen until after Labor Day, and many that opened are closed again. When COVID-19 statistics and science-based facts change daily, or hourly, flexibility is vital in all of our lives. This is creating a moving target for many manufacturers who provide products to supply USDA school meal operations that feed millions of children daily. There will be continued manufacturing of meals for the 31 million students that qualify for free or reduced lunches. How to get these meals to students effectively is another issue landing on school district leaders laps. It is all quite mind-boggling.

I spoke recently with several CEOs, and like us all, they have voiced their concerns about the unknown. Many stated their business models have to remain flexible. Many would rather scramble to fill orders when and if orders come in verses warehouse stockpiling, or in refrigerated/frozen storage units. Some hurdles include ramping staff up to meet production needs and the uncertainty of calculating raw materials to be brought in. Spot-buying versus projected volume-buying to fill potential orders is like rolling the dice in Vegas, given the unpredictability and state of the virus.

The school lunch impact will be widespread as it encompasses nearly the full spectrum of food products, especially dairy, produce, grains (bread), eggs, and commodity meats — as I have said in many recent blogs, farmers to truckers to the eaters and all parts in between.

What is happening in your local area with schools opening? Please share your thoughts.

Live well,

Remember to wear your mask when going out, adhere to social distancing, and wash your hands frequently.

Schooled

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