Additional Challenges The survey included a free-response question: "Are there any other school food procurement challenges you have faced in the last year that were not captured in the above list?" A total of 792 respondents completed this question, and those responses were grouped into 30 categories, see Appendix C: Table of Results, Table 9. The top four answer categories were: • No other challenges (51%) • High-cost food products (11%) • Food availability (8%) • Complex regulatory requirements (8%) High-Cost Food Products High-cost food products were named as the top procurement challenge and a top additional challenge for respondents, highlighting the weight of economic trends on Child Nutrition Program operations and their staff. A respondent from a rural school in the Midwest region wrote, “The cost of foods has tripled over the last three to four years.” And while small and rural districts saw the impacts of cost compounded—high food prices lead to high shipping, delivery, and storage fees—districts of all sizes and urbanicity named this challenge. Respondents mentioned costs being a key determinant when deciding to incorporate more local foods, farm products, and scratch cooking into their operations. Rising costs also mean that some purchases that were previously below the formal procurement threshold are now above the threshold, requiring the use of formal Requests for Proposal (RFPs) or Invitations for Bid (IFBs). A respondent from an urban school district in the Southwest region wrote, “Rising costs have created a larger demand for RFPs, which demands more time. $50,000 is not the same it was in 2018.” Food Availability Supply chain and availability came in as the second top procurement challenge, and the second additional challenge, reiterating the relationship between the most pressing challenges faced by school business officials and school nutrition staff. As one respondent from a suburban school district in the Midwest region put it, “Out-of-stock items require substitution, and usually those substitute items come at a higher cost.” A school nutrition director from a rural district in the Southeast region shared that “[o]n any given week we will have as many as a dozen substitutions.” Item shortages affect pricing, and the surge in prices affects the availability of less-expensive options. This can lead to lower-quality products, which makes meeting nutritional and meal-pattern requirements even more challenging. A business manager from the Western region explained this connection: “Schools have struggled to obtain certain food items due to shortages, production delays, and transportation problems. This makes menu planning difficult and can lead to substitutions that may not meet nutritional guidelines...food prices make budgeting unpredictable and can force schools to...reduce the quality of ingredients.”
16 Procuring Good Food at School: From Contracts to Lunch Trays |
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