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Global supply chain delays are affecting student school lunches

A cafeteria food counter.
CDC / Unsplash

Transportation experts and global freight trackers both agree in saying that the worldwide supply chain is compromised. While some of the problem is due to the COVID-19 pandemic, cracks in the system were visible before the pandemic began.In Utah schools, meal service workers used to know the meals on the menu three months in advance. But Tooele School District’s Nutrition Director Casey Kress says that meals are subject to change without notice, and it’s become a “daily occurrence.” Kress says the district is dealing with shortages of plasticware and the suppliers have been forced to switch out unavailable food items for substitutes that are actually in stock. 

 

The shortage extends to workers as well. Communications Director for Alpine School District David Stephenson says the district has at least 40 unfilled nutrition service worker positions.

 

School districts are saying they will have to continue doing what they’ve been doing since COVID, and even before, which is adapt and work their way through tough times.

Tyler Hewitt is the web/social media assistant at UPR. He writes stories every day, updates the website and manages the station's Twitter and Facebook pages. Tyler is a senior at Utah State University and is studying public relations, marketing, and psychology. He loves to write, listen to music, play video games, play tennis and hang out with his fiancé and cat, Juno. He is a great plant dad and recently started collecting vinyl records!