School nutrition trending: How the 25 largest school districts are reopening; boxed meals and grocery bags

This September, many school districts went back to school with a mix of in-person and remote learning. At each district around the country, the opening and meal plans at K-12 schools varies. Food Management checked in with the 25 largest districts in the U.S. (the FM K-12 Power Players) to see the meal plans for the upcoming school year after the USDA extended the meal waivers until Dec. 31. 

Focusing in on Minneapolis specifically, Minneapolis Public Schools developed a 5-day meal box for students packed with nutrition and fresh produce for students who will be learning entirely from home for the 2020/21 school year. 

After the initial shutdown in March, the foodservice team in Minneapolis started handing out “brunch bags,” with one breakfast and one lunch, then shifted a couple weeks later to five-day boxes, and soon after that, seven-day boxes, something that will continue throughout the fall term.

And in Virginia, Prince William County School District is offering families bags of ingredients in lieu of premade meals as a way to feed 91,000 students and families while employing 900 foodservice workers across the district.

See what else is trending in K-12.