Box Tops

[Bekka]

Hi, I'm feeling a bit frustrated about the campaign for Box Tops. I think it's a noble program, but I think it should be "casual". Our school is very incentive-based and the classes get a prize for a total of 100 box tops each month. I have 2 school children and usually buy more healthy/organic stuff. Our family is lucky if it gets 8 box tops in a month. I feel like they're campaigning for us to buy more of the foods/products with box tops.

Minor vent, but vent nonetheless.

[Mommabelle]

I had the same problem with soda pop-tops this fall.

[3boysmom]

As a former chair person for our school's box tops program, I can tell you that the companies that offer these box tops are pretty pushy in trying to get schools to push their products "for the good of the school". They certainly are not offering to give schools money (10 cents per box top) out of the goodness of their hearts. Our school has a monthly schoolwide drawing for all of the tops turned in that month. The winner gets a $5 gift card to a book store. Our goal is to get the kids to remember to bring in the boxtops from the products their families buy anyway - we don't advertise or ask them to buy things that they wouldn't ordinarily purchase. Our school makes $700-$800 a year on this and the money is used for books and computers. I think it is definitely worth doing if they are products you buy anyway, but I do not agree with pushing families to change their usual buying habits.

[kewb]

Tell the school they should start a scrip program. You buy gift cards to local supermarkets and the school gets a percentage. You are shopping at the market anyway and you don't have to buy products you normally don't buy. A win-win.

[Bekka]

Originally Posted by 3boysmom

I think it is definitely worth doing if they are products you buy anyway, but I do not agree with pushing families to change their usual buying habits.

I think this is exactly right. But I think the problem is that there are some of the people in the school who are just as bit energetic in their urging. Not always teachers. Very few of the products at TJ's have this label (a place I shop frequently). Ends up being free advertising/incentive stuff for the companies, don't you think?

[Bekka]

Originally Posted by kewb

Tell the school they should start a scrip program. You buy gift cards to local supermarkets and the school gets a percentage. You are shopping at the market anyway and you don't have to buy products you normally don't buy. A win-win.

We do something like this where you can register your frequent shopper card number and the school gets a percentage. But there are about 6 different supermarkets within 15 minutes, and it's hard to get continuity for the school.

[kewb]

They might want to look into signing up with a scrip company. Our school uses Great Lake Scrip. www.glscrip.com . They offer cards to about 500 different companies. Supermarkets, restaurants, department stores, etc. I used the program to buy the gift cards I usually buy at this time of year as gifts.

[Flor]

Our schools use escrip I am annoyed at box tops, too. If you buy generic or Trader Joes or organics, there's no box top. Lame. Anyway, ours are low key.

[shelbean91]

We also do box tops. I'm a teacher and our school recognizes the rooms with the highest box tops. I could care less, personally, but in a school w/1000 kids, it does add up pretty quickly. I don't change my purchase habits b/c of the box tops, and honestly, I usually forget to cut the tops of any products I happen to buy that do ahve the labels.

[DesertMommy]

I LOVE scrip

Originally Posted by kewb

They might want to look into signing up with a scrip company. Our school uses Great Lake Scrip. www.glscrip.com . They offer cards to about 500 different companies. Supermarkets, restaurants, department stores, etc. I used the program to buy the gift cards I usually buy at this time of year as gifts.

Great Lake Scrip also has Whole Foods as an option so you can get organics and vitamins etc. which is great for us because I only do about %5 of our shopping at the larger stores because of the lack of organics and other choices.

Our school does Scrip, E-scrip (Vons), other card (ralphs, target etc.) registrations, box-tops, soup labels, Sally Foster, and random smaller fund raisers. Fund raising is never ending at a small Catholic school. But Scrip is pretty darn cool. More schools should do it because of the choice involved, no pressure to buy box after box of sugar cereal and convenience foods.