Josh Elledge - Chief Executive Angel
We're mere weeks away from the start of the school year at most public schools in Michigan. The countdown may be even shorter if your child attends a private school, and my Facebook news feed is starting to fill with back-to-school pictures from friends.
Hopefully you've already got a good start on your school shopping, but have you thought about this:
What are you going to feed them for lunch?
Why hot lunch is no bargain
Buying hot lunch at school is convenient, but many parents are questioning whether the food doled out by the lunch lady is healthy. It's not cheap either for that matter.
Let's assume the average school lunch is $3.00 ““ that's about the amount the government will reimburse schools through the National School Lunch Program in 2014-2015. At that price, you're paying $540 a year for just one child to eat, assuming there are 180 days of instruction. Throw in a couple siblings, and school lunch can quickly become unaffordable.
Plus, you might have good reason to question the food's quality. The organization School Food Focus reports less than half of the cost of a school lunch is spent on food. About 55 percent of the price is spent on labor, including administration, and supplies.
50 cent school lunches
If you think there's no way you can compete with a $3 school lunch, think again. In the past, I've been able to pack lunches for my kids for as little as 50 cents a lunch.
How?
It's simple. I use Enlightened Shopping on SavingsAngel.com to match coupons with sales and then stock up on lunch supplies.
That means I have a freezer full of lunch meat and bread I bought at a deep discount that will make nearly free sandwiches. I add some seasonal, sale fruit or veggies as a side and pour some milk in a thermos to drink. If you want to be really frugal, have your kids drink water.
How to save on your kids' school lunches
Maybe your kids aren't into sandwiches. That's ok. There are plenty of other ways to save. Try these tried and true strategies.
·Use the coupon match-ups as a guide:Just as you use the coupon match-ups to guide your menu planning (remember how we talked about that two weeks ago?), you need to do the same with your lunches. See where the deals are in the store and use those sale items as a basis for your lunches.
·Stock up on sales:Likewise, buy extras when you spot a great deal and freeze what you won't use immediately. Bread will thaw on the counter top and lunch meat in the fridge. If properly frozen, taste and texture should be the same.
·Skip single servings:Unless there is an awesome coupon match-up making an item practically free, skip the single serving items. Same with the Lunchables. You could buy boxes of crackers and slice up chunk cheese yourself for way less than those lunch packs cost.
·Think outside normal lunch fare:One frugal ““ and tasty! ““ way to step outside the sandwich rut is to make extras at dinner and send the leftovers for lunch. Some schools provide microwaves, but even if they don't, many leftovers are good cold too. Next time you have an extra chicken breast from dinner, slice it into strips, send it to school with some dipping sauce and see what your kids think.
School is just around the corner. Don't let school lunches make you poor. Rather than subjecting your child to mushy peas and mystery meat, pack some homemade goodness for your child to eat this year!
