School district apologizes after throwing away students’ meals

Richfield Public Schools in Richfield, Minn., has apologized after some students’ hot lunches were thrown away earlier this week, CBS 58 reports. 

Around 40 students at Richfield High School had their hot lunches thrown away Monday and replaced with peanut butter and jelly sandwiches due to having a negative lunch balance of $15 or more. 

The school has since apologized on Facebook and has promised that school administration will meet with student government to see how they can solve the issue. Throughout the week, students can also visit tables set up in the cafeteria to ask questions and check their lunch account balances. 

The district said it had more than $19,669 in outstanding meal debt before the incident. A fund has been set up on the district’s nutrition website to allow people to donate money to alleviate its meal debt. School officials say they have received more than $3,600 so far. 

Lunch shaming has become a national issue, with many states introducing and passing bills outlawing the practice.