Alabama School Districts Hit With Food Shortage, Warn Of Remote School Days

A school district just north of Montgomery, Alabama, informed parents in a Facebook post that their food vendors are experiencing “supply chain issues” that have led to no food deliveries, and some area schools might not be able to feed kids, according to The Birmingham News. 

Alexander City Schools urged parents to feed their children before school or bring snacks due to the lack of food at schools. 

“As you know, breakfast and lunch is served daily in our schools. In previous weeks we have not received our food deliveries due to suppliers who are short on supplies, drivers and even warehouse employees,” school officials said in a Facebook post on Saturday.

“Breakfast may be impacted more so than lunch in the coming weeks. If possible, we ask that you feed your student breakfast prior to school or try to send a snack,” the officials continued. 

Alexander is experiencing various challenges that stretch from farm to cafeteria table. Food and labor shortages impact everything from food production to transportation to even serving up meals at schools. 

Alexander is not an isolated issue. School districts across the state are facing similar shortages to varying degrees. 

Dothan City Schools, located in the state’s southeastern corner, have already notified parents of the possibility that remote school days are possible. The school system must close schools to rebuild depleted inventories of food. 

“As a last resort, we may also ask that you prepare to have virtual/remote school days a few days out of the week to alleviate the stress of our food supplies,” the district told parents on Sept. 23.”We face a situation where we must do everything we can to continue providing a nurturing environment for our students to learn and grow.”

Snarled supply chains have upended other school districts across the country, including ones in Wisconsin and Indiana. 

The problem appears to worsen over the last month as some schools are preparing to close down and return to remote learning for other reasons than the pandemic.