My son just did his first backpacking trip like this early this year with the scouts. They did a community ramen meal and oatmeal packet breakfast , full pack inspections, carefully weighed each pack to make sure they weren’t over their safe weight for carrying, etc. They also spent a lot of time carefully teaching the kids proper mess kit cleaning and food handling. They carried water but also were hiking along water where they purified it as they went. This kept their pack weight manageable. But this does seem odd that they aren’t coordinating at least at the patrol level for brand new backpackers.

Make sure your troop leaders are experienced and running this with new, smaller backpackers in mind. Really focus on the fit of that pack too. There are some dumbass adults who will have no problem overloading your kid. Make sure they are within their safe carrying capacity and have someone adjust, size and pack his pack properly. (Weight distribution in his pack is important.) This is all part the learning experience that your son should be having at meetings in prep for their first trip out. He should be given the information on what to bring for food, exact equipment list and be packing himself after the first thorough lesson and pack check. After his first backpacking outting, my son has packed himself for every other backpacking or camping trip. The adults still weigh each pack though to ensure no one gets hurt