How Does Grab ‘n’ Go Work?

Grab ‘n’ Go can be served before the bell and/or afterwards as a Second Chance Breakfast. Carts containing the breakfast items, usually cold foods, already wrapped and placed in a bag, are positioned around the campus to reach the largest number of students as they enter the school or move from class to class during the morning. With PINs, swipe cards or tickets, students are quickly processed at the point-of-sale kiosk or cart, and then they consume the meal while walking to class. Many teachers permit students to finish this USDA breakfast quietly at the beginning of class. When combined with Provisions 2/3, all children eat free. Use of student identifiers, either punched in or by means of a swipe card, ensures that each student eats breakfast only once. The important thing, though, is that Grab ‘n Go brings essential nutrition to many students who otherwise wouldn’t get to it.

What’s For Breakfast?

The Grab ‘n’ Go meal is a bagged meal that meets the standards for USDA reimbursement, including three food components. Each bag is individually wrapped in advance by cafeteria staff and is easy to consume and mess-free. Items have to be cold and the choices resemble those for classroom breakfast – fresh fruit or fruit juice, cold cereal and milk, bagels, breakfast sandwiches and other healthy “fast” food.

Who Benefits?

First and foremost, all students can benefit. Some students are still hungry when they get to school and have no time to sit and eat a traditional breakfast in the cafeteria. Other students are rushed and have no time to eat at home, have long commutes, or eat only unhealthy foods earlier in the morning. Without a good breakfast they are unlikely to take advantage of the school day. School food service benefits by serving significantly more reimbursable meals each day. And, of course, everyone benefits from the wonderful change in the school atmosphere when all the students are nutritiously fed and ready to learn.

Where is it happening?

Grab ‘n’ Go is most popular in secondary schools, particularly in schools with relatively large numbers of students who enter at different times from different entrances and for whom the cafeteria may be remote or too small, anyway. Cutler-Orosi, for example, has increased its participation enormously by introducing Grab ‘n’ Go service in its middle and high schools, turning its financial picture around in the process. State-funded breakfast expansion grants are available to fund many of the equipment costs associated with initiating breakfast service from carts around the campus.