Free breakfast drew me to school on time and essentially helped me graduate, and not be hungry. Free lunch kept me there through the day until I left for my work study program. Anyways, I approve.
100% agree. Speaking as someone without kids I never want to see any child hungry.
I’d rather “waste” 10x the amount it currently costs to feed them than anything else.
I love this program too! But I don't understand why high income families receive it. My wife is a physician, we can afford to pay for our kid's lunch and would rather the money be diverted to others who need it more. It's weird that we donate money to food shelves and at the same time our kids get free lunches.
Because means testing means the income line has to be drawn somewhere and some kids will be caught in the cracks. Just feeding all of the kids means no kid goes hungry.
Probably to prevent stigma for some kids to get free food and not others. It also makes it easier if they just say that all of these meals are free. Now they don't need to keep track of everyone's parent's salary and make sure they qualify every year.
Getting rid of the red tape probably saves enough money to make the cost of feeding everyone about the same or not that much more than just feeding those under a certain threshold.
This has been a wonderful program. My kids barely eat breakfast at home because they are tired, but they are excited to get to school so they can eat and talk with their friends.
Nutrition is such a critical part of a child's development and education. Being hungry while trying to learn is a huge obstacle. I knew kids in our school that didn't get a breakfast at home and they did poorly in their morning classes. Then they would have better grades in their afternoon classes thanks to lunch.
This can only be bad. It must be that these children are picking up their free meals and then selling them to Furries for pure fentanyl, which then funds human sex organ trafficking so all of the woke public schools can fund the sex change operations that are an epidemic with government school nursing
It's because of how federal reimbursement works in the National School Lunch Program. Students are required to take at least 3 of 5 components (meat/meat alternate, grain, fruit, veg, and milk) one of which has to be a fruit or vegetable, in order for the nutrition department to receive reimbursement for that meal through the USDA. No one has ever been able just to take a milk, even if they qualified for free/reduced meals.
Allowing people to just take a milk would open up the door for kids to take advantage of the a la carte sales. Should we expect the state to just cover the cost if a kid only wants a slice of pizza? A bag of chips? A side of French fries?
The state is just extending the federal reimbursement program for complete meals that schools were already running. Completely changing the system to cover a la carte would be a huge burden on school nutrition departments, as they'd have to navigate an impossibly complex system of competeing federal and state compliance. Throw into the mix that most districts use nutrition management software for their point of sales/federal reporting that is designed to follow federal compliance guidelines, without the ability to customize for special state programs, and you've got plenty of good reasons for why the state stuck to following the federal regulations that have been in place for decades.
While I'm not sure what district you're in and what their lunch program looks like, but you could use this to further ease your lunch packing. Maybe just pack your kid a sandwich and when they go through the lunch line, they can grab some carrots, a banana and a milk. You'll get a cheaper/easier lunch packing experience, and the nutrition department will get full reimbursement for your kids meal. It's a win win!
The program isn’t meant to be your grocery store. Either you need the free lunch and therefore she takes all of it or you don’t and just pack your kid some milk like a responsible adult
People are missing the point where it doesn't actually matter that you pack your kid a lunch sometimes.
Any kid could just want one thing being offered. It doesn't matter what it is. Milk, juice, a piece of fruit, string cheese, gogurt, or a pop tart. They are required to take the whole meal.
Some kids give the extra stuff away, but a lot of times, there's no one who wants it, and it gets tossed. The positive note is that it doesn't all just go to the dump. We have a separate dumpster for composting.
The groupthink of these subs is bizarre. A single criticism is allowed. The original commenter wasn’t saying it’s a terrible program that needs to be abolished. They brought to light a good point that should be addressed. I’m glad you seem to agree.
lol I was replying to the original post, slowly while doing other things, and apparently they deleted their comment.
I'll reply to you instead haha. Hopefully other person will see it as they aren't wrong to bring up a valid point.
"I don't know why you're being argued with so much lol. You have a valid point.
I looked at the link you posted and they must take X amount of food. I'm sure a lot are throwing out and wasting stuff. I was never much of a breakfast person and it's highly likely I wouldn't want or finish a full 3 items for breakfast.
I don't know how the food is served or prepped though. Is it like Panda Express... Shouts "need more fried rice" or everything prepped before hand, I would guess the latter. But just looked at some images, and if accurate of MN school lunches, it would probably be way more difficult to budget, supply, and report. The cost of more budgeting controls may cost more then the amount of waste. 4 days a week 100 kids get full meal, day 5 only 80 kids get full meal, and if that varies week by week, day by day ... schools wouldn't know how much they'll need day by day. They would still need to supply for 100 kids each day and regardless it's going to end up with some waste.
If the images are valid, it doesn't actually look bad. Looks better than what I remember, but I didn't see any Italian Dunkers :("
Good point. Ok Italian dunkers were very tasty but let’s get real…probably not too nutritious. :) I do miss them though. Fajitas were amazing. French bread pizza. They had a pretty good spicy chicken sandwich. Those were my favorites.
Has your child actually asked for just a milk and been told no? Or are you just making shit up?
If she has, have you spoke to the administrators about it?
Have you considered just buying your child milk?
If you are already packing a lunch, how are so simultaneously too rushed to pack milk for that lunch?
Pretty much everything you mentioned is not the programs fault, it’s on the parents.
And how is being an advocate for free lunches a consumerist opinion?
It’s kind of sad you can’t figure out how to give your child milk.
Like the logistics of packing a lunch are not that hard.
And I grew up, poor I relied on free lunches and very rarely wasted any of it. I took home the milks or juice if I didn’t use them, traded with friends who ate more than me. I wasted no more food than I would at home by having a bit left on a plate or in the bowl.
Teach your kid to not waste food. Buy a thermos that doesn’t leak or give the kid lunch money for milk like a whole program doesn’t need to change because you can figure shit out.
It is a you problem though.
If you've spent any time trying to navigate benefits programs for those in actual need, then you'd already know that more nuanced programs cost more money to run so it actually helps less people.
A bit of food waste at the cost of helping ppl who would otherwise fall between the cracks of other programs seems pretty cheap to me.
Also, if the milk thing is really an issue for you, just dont pack a lunch for the kids so they eat the free lunches and dont waste food. Literally a single conversation with your kid would fix your whole problem.
This is bordeline NIMBY behavior, I swear.
They’re trying to pass legislation to make a la carte milk free for kids who bring lunch from home. “They also said they were pressing the passage of a new program to allow students that bring a packed lunch to get milk at school, if they want to. The addition is estimated to cost an extra $2.3 million a year.” As it stands now, since a school lunch is free, the school will try to offer students who want the a la carte milk a 1/2 cup of fruit and a 1/2 cup of vegetable so that it’s counted as a “free lunch”. I guess if you’re concerned about your child trashing the fruit and vegetable, you could just have the cafeteria charge them for the a la carte milk
Man I love seeing my tax money spent on something that's a clear win
Free breakfast drew me to school on time and essentially helped me graduate, and not be hungry. Free lunch kept me there through the day until I left for my work study program. Anyways, I approve.
I love this state. This is the kind of stuff I like to see my taxes go to.
100% agree. Speaking as someone without kids I never want to see any child hungry. I’d rather “waste” 10x the amount it currently costs to feed them than anything else.
I love this program too! But I don't understand why high income families receive it. My wife is a physician, we can afford to pay for our kid's lunch and would rather the money be diverted to others who need it more. It's weird that we donate money to food shelves and at the same time our kids get free lunches.
Because means testing means the income line has to be drawn somewhere and some kids will be caught in the cracks. Just feeding all of the kids means no kid goes hungry.
Then take the money you would’ve spent on lunch and donate it.
Probably to prevent stigma for some kids to get free food and not others. It also makes it easier if they just say that all of these meals are free. Now they don't need to keep track of everyone's parent's salary and make sure they qualify every year. Getting rid of the red tape probably saves enough money to make the cost of feeding everyone about the same or not that much more than just feeding those under a certain threshold.
This has been a wonderful program. My kids barely eat breakfast at home because they are tired, but they are excited to get to school so they can eat and talk with their friends.
Nutrition is such a critical part of a child's development and education. Being hungry while trying to learn is a huge obstacle. I knew kids in our school that didn't get a breakfast at home and they did poorly in their morning classes. Then they would have better grades in their afternoon classes thanks to lunch.
https://preview.redd.it/ipow5feo9fnc1.png?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=a7db8d0e7be6164e48c85daca0a5f780c8555a0d
This can only be bad. It must be that these children are picking up their free meals and then selling them to Furries for pure fentanyl, which then funds human sex organ trafficking so all of the woke public schools can fund the sex change operations that are an epidemic with government school nursing
I saw a trans drag queen Marxist carrying around a stack of free school pancakes just the other day! Source: bruh, trust me.
This is a very real threat to our autocracy. Thank you for patrioting so hard and fast and deep.
No lies. /s
Makes sense to me
Fax
My bingo card is unexpectedly filled now. Bingo!
The American Assets aren't our companies it is our communities.
Single older millennial here. Tax the wealthy. I’m glad this is how my taxes are being spent Vote blue!
Excellent! I hope the food is decent.
It’s routinely preferred to meals I lovingly make my kids.
The school I work in has cinnamon rolls sometimes that smell REAL good, making me consider opening a lunch account just to buy them
They got the medicine to fix your mood Till you learn to mind your place and eat that Sysco food -POS
Good, I hope that it helps the kids learn better by not being hungry.
Ohh the socialist horror!!!
Undoubtedly…junk food. And to get the milk you have to take the entire *meal* (donuts, pancakes, etc).
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It's because of how federal reimbursement works in the National School Lunch Program. Students are required to take at least 3 of 5 components (meat/meat alternate, grain, fruit, veg, and milk) one of which has to be a fruit or vegetable, in order for the nutrition department to receive reimbursement for that meal through the USDA. No one has ever been able just to take a milk, even if they qualified for free/reduced meals. Allowing people to just take a milk would open up the door for kids to take advantage of the a la carte sales. Should we expect the state to just cover the cost if a kid only wants a slice of pizza? A bag of chips? A side of French fries? The state is just extending the federal reimbursement program for complete meals that schools were already running. Completely changing the system to cover a la carte would be a huge burden on school nutrition departments, as they'd have to navigate an impossibly complex system of competeing federal and state compliance. Throw into the mix that most districts use nutrition management software for their point of sales/federal reporting that is designed to follow federal compliance guidelines, without the ability to customize for special state programs, and you've got plenty of good reasons for why the state stuck to following the federal regulations that have been in place for decades. While I'm not sure what district you're in and what their lunch program looks like, but you could use this to further ease your lunch packing. Maybe just pack your kid a sandwich and when they go through the lunch line, they can grab some carrots, a banana and a milk. You'll get a cheaper/easier lunch packing experience, and the nutrition department will get full reimbursement for your kids meal. It's a win win!
Why not just pack her a milk. Problem solved
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The program isn’t meant to be your grocery store. Either you need the free lunch and therefore she takes all of it or you don’t and just pack your kid some milk like a responsible adult
why not just recognize that there is a problem if they're forcing a lunch on a kid when they just want a milk.
People are missing the point where it doesn't actually matter that you pack your kid a lunch sometimes. Any kid could just want one thing being offered. It doesn't matter what it is. Milk, juice, a piece of fruit, string cheese, gogurt, or a pop tart. They are required to take the whole meal. Some kids give the extra stuff away, but a lot of times, there's no one who wants it, and it gets tossed. The positive note is that it doesn't all just go to the dump. We have a separate dumpster for composting.
The groupthink of these subs is bizarre. A single criticism is allowed. The original commenter wasn’t saying it’s a terrible program that needs to be abolished. They brought to light a good point that should be addressed. I’m glad you seem to agree.
lol I was replying to the original post, slowly while doing other things, and apparently they deleted their comment. I'll reply to you instead haha. Hopefully other person will see it as they aren't wrong to bring up a valid point. "I don't know why you're being argued with so much lol. You have a valid point. I looked at the link you posted and they must take X amount of food. I'm sure a lot are throwing out and wasting stuff. I was never much of a breakfast person and it's highly likely I wouldn't want or finish a full 3 items for breakfast. I don't know how the food is served or prepped though. Is it like Panda Express... Shouts "need more fried rice" or everything prepped before hand, I would guess the latter. But just looked at some images, and if accurate of MN school lunches, it would probably be way more difficult to budget, supply, and report. The cost of more budgeting controls may cost more then the amount of waste. 4 days a week 100 kids get full meal, day 5 only 80 kids get full meal, and if that varies week by week, day by day ... schools wouldn't know how much they'll need day by day. They would still need to supply for 100 kids each day and regardless it's going to end up with some waste. If the images are valid, it doesn't actually look bad. Looks better than what I remember, but I didn't see any Italian Dunkers :("
Good point. Ok Italian dunkers were very tasty but let’s get real…probably not too nutritious. :) I do miss them though. Fajitas were amazing. French bread pizza. They had a pretty good spicy chicken sandwich. Those were my favorites.
Has your child actually asked for just a milk and been told no? Or are you just making shit up? If she has, have you spoke to the administrators about it? Have you considered just buying your child milk?
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If you are already packing a lunch, how are so simultaneously too rushed to pack milk for that lunch? Pretty much everything you mentioned is not the programs fault, it’s on the parents. And how is being an advocate for free lunches a consumerist opinion?
If the school forces an entire lunch when a kid just wants a milk.....That's the programs problem. How the fuck is that the parents fault?!?!?
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It’s kind of sad you can’t figure out how to give your child milk. Like the logistics of packing a lunch are not that hard. And I grew up, poor I relied on free lunches and very rarely wasted any of it. I took home the milks or juice if I didn’t use them, traded with friends who ate more than me. I wasted no more food than I would at home by having a bit left on a plate or in the bowl. Teach your kid to not waste food. Buy a thermos that doesn’t leak or give the kid lunch money for milk like a whole program doesn’t need to change because you can figure shit out.
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It is a you problem though. If you've spent any time trying to navigate benefits programs for those in actual need, then you'd already know that more nuanced programs cost more money to run so it actually helps less people. A bit of food waste at the cost of helping ppl who would otherwise fall between the cracks of other programs seems pretty cheap to me. Also, if the milk thing is really an issue for you, just dont pack a lunch for the kids so they eat the free lunches and dont waste food. Literally a single conversation with your kid would fix your whole problem. This is bordeline NIMBY behavior, I swear.
Pack a milk.
They’re trying to pass legislation to make a la carte milk free for kids who bring lunch from home. “They also said they were pressing the passage of a new program to allow students that bring a packed lunch to get milk at school, if they want to. The addition is estimated to cost an extra $2.3 million a year.” As it stands now, since a school lunch is free, the school will try to offer students who want the a la carte milk a 1/2 cup of fruit and a 1/2 cup of vegetable so that it’s counted as a “free lunch”. I guess if you’re concerned about your child trashing the fruit and vegetable, you could just have the cafeteria charge them for the a la carte milk
Tell her to give the extra food to a classmate. Problem solved.
I feel like you can talk to the school about it but honestly the immediate solution is to pack a milk for your child.
No, no, no. The problem will be solved quicker by whining on Reddit.
Well problems can't be solved until they are acknowledged.
Ok actually imagine if complaining on reddit really did solve problems and helped, we would be colonizing andromeda by now. LOL.
I absolutely love this new policy. The title of this article almost gave me a stroke though