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Wake County school nutrition warns reserves low; staff proposes options including modest meal-price increases
Summary
Wake County school nutrition staff told the board their enterprise fund has been strained by rising food, supply and labor costs and falling participation; staff presented revenue and expense options and asked the board for guidance on next steps.
Wake County school nutrition officials told the Board of Education that the district’s school-meal program is an enterprise fund facing rising food and labor costs and declining participation, and that the program’s fund balance is at levels that require action to maintain operations.
Tiffany Lawrence, the district’s senior director of child nutrition services, said the program serves about 20,000 breakfasts and more than 50,000 lunches daily across roughly 99 schools, and that year‑to‑date federal reimbursements total about $35 million. Lawrence said the program’s emergency cash reserve is about $9 million while monthly operating needs are comparable to roughly $7.8 million, leaving only about one month of reserves if current trends continue.
Lawrence detailed cost pressures: rising supplier case charges, growing…
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