The slow-moving cargo ships that officials say are creating a chaotic supply chain and interrupting the flow of goods nationwide is also presenting problems for schools.

“The end of last year, I’d say, it kind of started,” Shenendehowa Central School District Director of Food Services Katy Headwell said. “We didn’t think it would be this bad for the beginning of the school year.”

The district consists of about 10,000 students, 6,000 to 7,000 of which eat lunch served by the school. Headwell says some products like sweet potato fries are hard to come by, making it tough to keep a variety of food on hand.

“We’ve gone to three or four different companies, and every time we ask, 'What can you give us?'” she said. “I mean, we cleaned them all out.”

In addition to food, Headwell says the district is usually short on paper products, too.

“We actually take to-go containers and we split them in half,” she said.

Shenendehowa is not alone. A quick survey of other schools in the Capital Region found similar issues.

“Patience. That’s the biggest thing we all need to have right now because it’s not just us,” she said. “I’m sure parents notice it when they go to the grocery story.”

Headwell has been told by her distributors that the challenges will likely persist well into 2022. But she’s confident she and her team will manage.

“Our why, why we’re here is those students,” she said. “At the end of the day, we will find food. We will get food. We will find something to feed the kids.”