A School Told A Mom Not To Pack Extra Food For Her Son’s Hungry Friend

A mom on TikTok vented to her followers when, according to her account, her son got in trouble at school for having “too much food” in his lunch bag.

And when TikTok user @hazelgreeneyez85 found out the reason why the school didn’t want her son to have extra food in his lunch box, she was even more peeved.

In a now-viral TikTok that received over 1.3 million views, the mom explained the dilemma while she showed the kinds of food she stuffs the lunchbox with — pudding, chips, an apple, an orange, etc. — for her son before he takes off for school.

“Would you believe I got reprimanded for sending my son to school with too much food?” she asked. “Now to me, that sounds ridiculous, because if he’s hungry, he should be able to eat.”

That makes sense. If a kid has a big appetite, he should be able to nom on as much food (and as much variety) as he likes. Seems pretty cut and dry. However, she then delves into the big twist of the story.

“But that’s not the reason we send all this extra food,” she adds. “This extra food is for a child in my son’s classroom. He told my son that the only time he gets to eat is at school.”

After he came home to tell his mom about his classmate, she decided to pack extra food from that day on, despite the school taking issue.

“Why would the school stop me from giving him extra food?” she asks. “I’m sure they’re aware of the situation going on at home, and I find it absolutely f—king disgusting that my son is getting reprimanded for doing a kind deed.”

“I’m gonna keep making this kid’s lunch, and they can kiss my a—,” she finishes the video.

At first glance, it may seem pretty heartless that the school would take issue with a student helping out another hungry student, but it may well be due to rules set by the administration — rules meant to help kids, but rules that make helping hungry kids harder.

She also explained that she had checked with the teacher beforehand to make sure that she wasn’t sending any possible allergy-inducing foods with her son.

“Some schools have a strict no sharing food rule,” one user wrote in her comment section.

If that’s the case, this mom is not buying that excuse. She replied, “Well if that’s the case then it should be their responsibility to make sure that child eats. If they’re still worried about Covid and allergies.”

Some schools are taking measures to make sure kids who may not get sufficient meals at home are able to fuel up during school hours. A 2016 Illinois food donation law for schools allows schools to encourage the donation of leftover food with something called “food sharing tables” — and this kind of waste-reducing, hunger-reducing plan has been spreading across multiple states.

Many schools with food programs have implemented FSTs to redistribute food to other students or end up donating the food to nonprofit organizations.

“FSTs within school cafeterias allow children to place their unconsumed food (e.g., packaged products, fruits) or beverages (e.g., packaged juices) for consumption by other students, reuse, or donation. During school breakfast or lunch times these tables help reduce food waste and encourage children to consume healthy food options at no cost to them,” The Network for Public Health law explained.

It should also be noted that some schools who do participate in food sharing tables have letters sent home to parents who will be informed in writing about the school’s sharing table policy so they can discuss use with their children. Of special concern are the students with food allergies.

These programs are important because even if kids with food-insecure households get free breakfast and lunch at school, it might not be enough for growing kids, especially if they aren’t getting dinner at home.

It seems like in this specific case, if this son’s school had a general food sharing table this issue could be resolved rather quickly. Until then, it seems like this Mama Bear is not going to stop stuffing her son’s lunch bag to the brim, and how can you not support that?