In my country, there’s no US style cafeteria (instead it’s a canteen where it’s up to the student if they want to buy anything) some bring their own lunches (home or leftovers) to school, so why do American kids rely on cafeteria food instead of bringing their own?
I mean, is cafeteria food across American schools that bad? It depends on where one resides or if they attend a public or private school. In my case I went to a private (Catholic) high school and the food there is actually good (& cheap when converted to USD).
Schools are run by cities, counties, with oversight and regulations divided between every level, all the way to Federal.
There are minimum standards set for nutrition but many kinds of schools are exempt from providing meals or meeting the minimum.
Some schools go above and beyond, providing nutritious breakfasts, lunches, and snacks that the students can take home. Others, on the other hand, see it as a hassle and do the bare minimum.
Many US schools are misfunded, with many layers of unneeded bureaucracy and testing added, pulling resources away from the classroom and cafeteria.
Yep. Like most answers to all encompassing “in the u.s.” questions the answer is “it depends”.