Your kids are telling the truth. They can’t have salad at lunch this week

Beaufort County school cafeterias are running this week sans salad bars, according to an email Sodexo director of wellness Jessica Perez sent to district principals earlier this week that was obtained by The Island Packet and The Beaufort Gazette.

An extreme cold in the western part of the country has led to a short supply of romaine and green leaf lettuce from produce suppliers, she wrote.

Fresh broccoli is also in short supply.

The lettuce shortage is an issue across the country. The (San Jose) Mercury News reported heavy winter rains as the culprit of the salad shortage.

Children enjoying a reprieve from leafy greens will see salad back on the menu by April 25. In the meantime, school cafeterias managers are offering substitute vegetables such as carrots, green beans and squash.

Even though the shortage could span several weeks, Sodexo is making arrangements to bring back the salad bar next week by mixing leaf mix with iceberg.

This story was originally published April 19, 2017 at 4:26 PM with the headline "Your kids are telling the truth. They can’t have salad at lunch this week."