Inflation Contributing To Price Increase Of Meals In Tennessee Schools

Image Credit: Amanda Mills, USCDCP / CC0

The Tennessee Conservative [By Paula Gomes] –

The Rutherford County School district has announced that school meal prices are increasing for the upcoming 2022-2023 school year. The same story is being told all across Tennessee with Weakley and Knox counties already having made similar announcements. The increase is due to inflation in food prices and also because a federal USDA program that helped provide free breakfast and lunch to all students is ending in August.

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The Tennessee School Nutrition Program released a document which states, “As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) provided waivers to allow all children to eat at no cost through the USDA Seamless Summer Option (SSO) program. Since April 2020, children throughout the United States have been able to eat meals at school at no cost to them. However, USDA no longer has the authority to grant such waivers, and, as such, school meal service will resume through the National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program, operating as it did prior to the outbreak of COVID-19 in March 2020.”

Beginning in August 2022, meals in Rutherford County Schools will be priced as follows:

• Student breakfast price – $2.00 all levels

• Student lunch price – $3.25 elementary and $3.50 middle and high schools

• Teacher/Guests – $2.50 breakfast and $4.25 lunch

Parents did not react positively to the news on a Rutherford County Schools social media post.

Allison Peach said, “Hopefully the increased price brings better options and hopefully they can be cooked correctly. My middle and high schoolers sent me pics regularly of their under cooked/raw food. Most days my kids would not eat lunch because of the food options. Not due to being picky but because the food was not edible.”

“Well this is disappointing guess I will be making my kids lunch again,” said Bethany Wood. “For that price I can definitely make my kid a way healthier lunch than what they serve.”

Rebecca Evans also agreed that the prices are too high. “The healthy meals I cook at home cost less than $3.25 a serving… this is absurd. I understand inflation but I will never understand $3.25 for a serving for a child!”

“The food taste like boiled quarters and unicorn ankles and you guys want these kids to pay more,” said Cee Edwards.

Parents who believe their children are eligible for free or reduced-price meals must submit a Free and Reduced Meal Program application. Rutherford County parents may apply HERE. These household income applications also help to determine if funding is available for other needs such as internet access, discounts for college application fees, scholarship opportunities, and discounted fees for SAT, ACT and AP tests.

About the Author: Paula Gomes is a Tennessee resident and reporter for The Tennessee Conservative. You can reach Paula at paula@tennesseeconservativenews.com.

One thought on “Inflation Contributing To Price Increase Of Meals In Tennessee Schools

  • June 2, 2022 at 6:06 pm
    Permalink

    WOW!! It took a Rocket scientist to figure that one out! They must not get to the store or gas station much??

    Reply

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