philadelphia public schools abandoned them citing a worker shortage. their orders have been unpredictable all year. we have a five-week lead time but then find out two days before it is not coming in. reporter: it is a different item every week. right now they re running out of trays, making daily menu changes even with their food staff down more than 20%. how much of a scramble has this been for staff? it has been constant. we really are trying in every way to make sure we are providing the meal. i will say we re not shorting any of the wood. they are not alone. cincinnati public schools are down close to 20 each week. dallas schools are adding more finger foods because they can t get enough utensils. in prince george s county, maryland the district canceled take home suppers. how has that affected your family? translator: we can no longer say we are going out to have fun because we need to buy food