Fort Carson experiences food shortages for some meal options

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) -- Fort Carson is reporting a shortage in some of their "to-go" options in food kiosks open last weekend. Officials on the base say the shortage was because around 1,800 soldiers came in to eat at the kiosks, a higher number than anticipated.

On Saturday, March 10, these photos showing empty shelves at the Fort Carson food kiosk were posted on "Hots&Cots," an app that allows soldiers in the army to post photos about their living conditions on bases around the United States.

"We all see the pictures and the pictures say a thousand words ... But how many of those empty shelves did you guys actually see?" Amanda Hoxie, a Senior Food Advisor for Fort Carson questioned.

She went on to admit, however, that they did run out of some food options.

"What happened last week, there's absolutely no excuse for it. We could have been, you know, better prepared for that.  But in our defense, it's something we could have never projected," Hoxie said.

Hoxie said other food options like meal prep and snacks were still available for soldiers on Fort Carson, and soldiers could submit a missed meal voucher if they didn't get to eat.

Soldiers pay a few hundred dollars out of their paycheck every month to eat on base. Fort Carson is required to feed three meals a day to soldiers who live there.

Hoxie said the new food kiosks were being run as a "pilot program," open during weekends with grab-and-go options and meal prep items. The option is more convenient for soldiers and allows for soldiers who would typically serve food to have the weekend off.

"We're constantly adding. We're listening to the soldiers. We're trying to make sure that we're on top of this," Hoxie said.

She said they are working to use those statistics gathered to ensure the shortage never happens again.