GRAND RAPIDS — This school year might be the first-time families have a lunch bill in two years. During the pandemic, schools were able to provide meals for free, regardless of a family's income. As grocery bills and inflation skyrocket, there are some organizations working with schools and families to make sure kids in West Michigan get fed.
"It's still a constant struggle for food service directors to get the foods that are ordered. It seems to be different products every other week of what they're struggling to get," said Mindy Grant, No Kid Hungry.
A lot of families might opt for packed lunches this year instead of paying for them again, and sometimes those don't provide as many healthy options.
"It doesn't include those fruits and vegetables, because at times, those are more expensive. And our schools do a really great job with sourcing local produce, which tends to be higher, and nutrition tends to be more of that whole fruit and whole vegetable to get the nutrients that they need," said Grant.
On top of that, districts are worried about "lunch shaming." That was a big issue before Covid when school staff or other students reacted to students who had racked up lunch money debt.
If you think you might qualify for free or reduced lunch, apply! A lot more families are getting help than they might have thought, and it can make a big difference in your weekly budget. Reach out to your school district nutrition program directly for that application.
"I think this is really going to rise to the top because school districts have to manage a budget, they have to pay for that food, they have to pay for their employees, they have to do all these things," said Grant.
Feeding America West Michigan helps bridge the gap on evenings and weekends.
"What families are feeling, we're feeling on a much larger scale," said Molly Kooi, Feeding America West Michigan. It provides supplies for backpack programs through non-profits like Hand2Hand or Kids' Food Basket.
"Right now, we're struggling to get some of the products that we would normally be getting because we spent so much on Gather 2 Grow our summer meals program where we saw more than twice as many kids as last year," said Kooi.
For the last five years, food donations have been down. To fill backpacks, Feeding America West Michigan needs fruit cups, granola bars, cheez its, sandwich crackers, anything you would think to put in your child's lunchbox.
"The need is there. So, we're anticipating more students will be signing up for backpack programs. And also, because of that, our backpack partners will be relying on us to provide even more food than we normally would," said Kooi.
If you think you might qualify for free or reduced lunch, apply! A lot more families are getting help than they might have thought, and it can make a big difference in your weekly budget. Reach out to your school district nutrition program directly for that application.
Kooi said if your organization wants to hold a food drive, that would really help. Donations go the farthest, $1 translates to 4 meals. For more information, check out the website: https://www.feedingamerica.org/
