Complaint About High Canteen Prices

When and how to use this letter

Send this letter to the principal or the canteen committee in-charge. Price complaints work best as comparisons, not as feelings — "a sandwich costs Rs. 150 here and Rs. 80 outside the gate" is a fact the administration must answer, while "the food is too expensive" is an opinion they can dismiss.

The non-obvious move that gives this complaint real force: ask to see the approved price list. Most school canteens operate under a contract that includes agreed prices, and contractors sometimes quietly raise them above the approved rates. If you can get the official price list from the office and compare it with what is actually being charged, your letter stops being about expensive food and becomes about a contract violation — which administrations act on immediately. Ask classmates to note prices for a few common items and attach the list; a table of ten overpriced items is compelling evidence.

Request a specific outcome: a revised, displayed price list approved by the administration, and periodic price reviews. If the canteen contract is due for renewal soon, mention that a review of pricing should be part of the renewal process. Keep the tone reasonable — you are asking for fair prices, not free food — and the administration is far more likely to engage.

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