Trying to stay compliant, understanding regulations, dealing with last-minute changes, and staying within budget causes significant stress for school nutrition staff. Ninety-five respondents specifically named a stressful work environment as the biggest impact of procurement challenges. A school nutrition director from the Mid-Atlantic region said, “Rising food costs and supply chain disruptions make it difficult to plan consistent menus...it adds stress as [staff] work to adjust on-the-fly and maintain quality meals. [F]inding the time to manage procurement effectively while juggling other priorities often feels overwhelming.” The stress also comes from potentially being out-of-compliance, even though they did everything in their power to follow the rules. As one school nutrition director from the Southwest region put it, “It is just added stress to the person requesting the quotes and/or bids to be able to be compliant with the regulations and guidelines and not be the source of the fine or review finding.” As staff spend their time solving urgent crises, performing administrative functions, and responding to emergent issues, they feel unable to accomplish their central goal: providing nutritious meals to students.
While workloads increase, staff do not feel that they receive additional support, resources, or capacity. This sometimes lowers morale, negatively impacting program operations. In turn, meal options for students are impacted when staff are not performing their best, have limited time to focus on food preparation, and are confined by tight budgets and supply chain disruptions. The impacts on students include fewer or less appealing lunch options, which can lead to students wasting food or refusing to eat altogether. A principal from the Mid-Atlantic region shared, “As a result [of limited varieties because of supply chain issues], a number of students will opt to not eat lunch. This has a negative effect in the classroom as hungry children are not able to focus, are more likely to act out, or shut down completely.” It also lowers the expected revenue for that school’s food budget, reinforcing this cycle of problems. Procurement challenges, from supply chain issues to overwhelmingly restrictive rules, form a ripple effect with downstream effects that impact food service staff and the students they serve. Finally, respondents from smaller, more rural areas reported unique challenges, including not having appropriate storage facilities and deliveries arriving late or not at all. Respondents shared that they resort to using other schools’ equipment; must be on-site during the night or weekends to receive deliveries; order more than is needed to meet delivery minimums; and sometimes drive several miles to multiple grocery stores when vendors cannot deliver an order.
13 Procuring Good Food at School: From Contracts to Lunch Trays |
Powered by FlippingBook