Given the undeniable links between academic performance and proper nutrition, the ongoing debate about government funding for school lunches is, at best, naive and, at worst, a sidestep to funding yet another cycle lane or other "nice to have".
It's not just a matter of policy but a pressing issue that demands funding - audited, accountable funding that addresses where the funds are needed and what is working and what isn't.
This is not a short-term issue tied to electoral cycles - New Zealand's low productivity growth is a generational problem.
Raising productivity is our biggest economic challenge, and education is at the heart of it. Without a skilled workforce with higher ambitions for future generations, the employment outlook for children in Year 1 today is grim.
Rather than responding reactively to an undereducated generation far more likely to rely on welfare, focused efforts on ensuring that future generations are well-educated is critical. A key part of this is ensuring children are equipped to learn, and it's widely recognised that students learn better with proper nutrition. Yet we cut government funding for school meals and rely on charities to fill the gap.
We're already facing poor educational outcomes in the current generation. If we want to live in a country where the majority struggle at or below the poverty line, we can continue on this path or we can demand change.
Productivity is the most significant long-term driver of wages and living standards. Our ability to improve living conditions hinges on our capacity to increase output per worker. Regardless of election results, long-term productivity growth in New Zealand has consistently fallen short of the goals set by any Government. As a result, many Kiwis' aspirations for a better quality of life are still out of reach.
The pandemic exacerbated our productivity levels and reinforced the idea that work-life balance is a right. The reality is that without a highly productive workforce, reduced work weeks won't be a choice; they will be a given, as less work will be available.
It's no secret that proficiency in reading, maths, and science has been in decline for years. Like any well-run business, the government must prioritise its "must-haves" over "nice-to-haves."
A quality education system should be a cornerstone of our society, and all efforts must be directed toward fixing a system that has been failing for decades.
Tania Walters, PUBLISHER
Tania Walters Publisher
SCHOOL-LED LUNCH
Benefits
In a recent study funded by Massey University’s Our Land and Water National Science Challenge, researchers focused on schoolled and community-run meal delivery programmes and their role in the agri-food sector in order to understand what makes the programme successful or not.
The team of researchers from the university consisted of sustainability expert Professor Nitha Palakshappa, Research Officer Derrylea Hardy and Sociocultural Anthropologist Associate Professor Sita Venkatswar.
The outcome found that meal programmes within schools do not work when designed and assessed on nutritional content alone. It also found that programmes that include foods that students normally prefer to eat alongside more nutritious ingredients. It also found that culturally relevant dishes that look, feel, and taste good were less likely to end up in the rubbish and uneaten.
The results also suggested that
school lunch programmes play a pivotal role in being able to bridge gaps between nutrition and helping to alleviate food poverty, which was listed as a critical reason they continue while being tailored to better students.
Professor Palakshappa said many of the less successful food-in-school initiatives had not provided the kind of food that students wanted to eat for lunch.
“People are less likely to eat food that is not tasty and doesn’t look like something that they are commonly eating at home,” said Palakshappa.
“For some students, if you give them macaroni cheese or spaghetti bolognese, then the chances are that
For some students, if you give them macaroni cheese or spaghetti bolognese, then the chances are that they will recognise and eat it because it is part of what they are already used to eating. But if I were to give those same students a vegetable curry without at least explaining what it is first, then they’re less likely to eat it. And vice versa for students who prefer eating curries.
they will recognise and eat it because it is part of what they are already used to eating. But if I were to give those same students a vegetable curry without at least explaining what it is first, then they’re less likely to eat it. And vice versa for students who prefer eating curries.”
Professor Palakshappa and her fellow authors found that successful programmes had catered to each individual school’s unique set of food preferences and cultures, which included listening to what students wanted to eat from a diverse menu and then offering a range of options.
“If you make sure that the nutritious food is something that people actually want to eat, then immediately you
create a spiral upwards in terms of their health and wellbeing. That has important ramifications later – for anything from labour and productivity through to how people access healthcare.”
The research also found that successful programmes had gone above and beyond to provide quality lunches for schools, worked closely to enhance the lunchtime experience, and reduced any feelings of shame for students with food-related insecurities.
It also found that school staff have been integral to the programme’s success by introducing food-related lessons and classes that have
At the same time, they were working with horticulture experts in the community to ensure that there were gardens planted so that vegetables were immediately accessible for these cook-ups. That meant students got to see how important it was to be in a place or a space where they had access to all these things that allowed them to eat well.
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explained unfamiliar foods to students before it is served for lunch. This has included teaching students about food history, the cooking process and its cultural significance.
Built-in kitchen premises have also made a vital difference for schools operating a school lunch programmes. Having on-site facilities has enabled fresher meals to be prepared and served to students faster, making them more appealing, and minimising food waste. The study found that many of the more effective programmes can enable a ‘safespace’ for students to receive food help and assistance.
Kura Kai was identified as one of the
more effective programmes, as it has supplied schools with freezers to store meals, allowing anyone to take meals home, feeding families and the wider community.
“They created no shame around accessing that food. The food was available in the freezer for people to take it as they needed. There’s no barrier – they can just pick up the food, put it in their bag, and walk out with it,” Professor Palakshappa explained.
School’s that operate the Kura Kai Rangatahi programme has also allowed secondary school students to gain NCEA credits. These have also allowed students to have a stronger
connection with the food they prepare.
The study also found that including students in the budgeting, planning and cooking processes has also provided students with invaluable schools.
“At the same time, they were working with horticulture experts in the community to ensure that there were gardens planted so that vegetables were immediately accessible for these cook-ups. That meant students got to see how important it was to be in a place or a space where they had access to all these things that allowed them to eat well.” H
LONGEST WAITLIST IN CHARITY’S History
A record number of schools and early childhood education centres have called on the support of children’s charity KidsCan.
JULIE CHAPMAN CEO, KidsCan
According to the charity, teachers have said that children, despite their shoes held together with duct tape, shivering with only t-shirts in winter, and less food in their lunch box, continue to show up in the classroom. As a consequence of financial struggles, some students’ learning has been greatly affected.
KidsCan has been inundated with request for support from schools, particularly from schools in middleincome areas. It now has more than 10,000 children in over 260 schools and early childhood education centres on its waiting list. This has been the largest it’s been in the charity’s 19year history.
KidsCan CEO, Julie Chapman, said that the repercussions have been enormous.
“The poverty line is shifting. It’s
The poverty line is shifting. It’s heartbreaking to see children who didn’t need help before now arriving at school lacking the very basics, and we are unable to get food and clothing to them because we don’t have enough funding. That’s why we’re launching an urgent appeal.
heartbreaking to see children who didn’t need help before now arriving at school lacking the very basics, and we are unable to get food and clothing to them because we don’t have enough funding. That’s why we’re launching an urgent appeal,” said Chapman.
“When kids are cold and hungry, they can’t learn, and they get left behind. We can’t forget about them.”
Throughout winter, schools were also concerned about student’s living conditions. One social worker said it was not uncommon to find up to 30 people living in one house, or multiple tents set up on the lawn. Kids Can said that hot water or warm clothes have become a luxury for some, and that it can effect the mental wellbeing of students. It also reported that some teachers had been shopping for second-hand goods and delivery food parcels to struggling families.
Of the 98 schools on KidsCan’s waiting list, a majority are located in middle-income areas. Principals have said that there are simply not enough resources to cope with increasing hardshp. Fifty-six of the schools don’t qualify for the government’s Ka Ora, Ka Ako lunch scheme either.
This has included a primary school on Waiheke Island, where there are
struggling locals beneath the grandeur of flash holiday homes. A rural school in the Waikato region was also listed as having 150 transient students, and an Auckland school that’s role has swayed due to housing intensification.
KidsCan said that schools with students facing poverty in middleincome areas can be harder to see as both children and their families try to hide it.
“I had a conversation yesterday with a mum who was in tears, saying, ‘I just can’t pay for more uniform for my boy. The money is not stretching far enough anymore,’” a principal spokesperson said.
“It was really heartbreaking, and it was a family who wouldn’t have been on my radar.”
In response to this, KidsCan has launched an urgent appeal to reach children in need of help, backed with the support for Meridian Energy. That charity has continued to support 889 schools, a third of New Zealand’s schools, and over 200 early childcare centres.
KidsCan has also secured enough funding from corporate and public donations in order to support a further 40 schools and seven early childcare centres for the remainder of this year, despite a record waitlist. H
Australia
TASMANIA’S SCHOOL LUNCH SOLUTION
Recent reporting from the Menzies Institute for Medical Research has indicated the success of the Tasmanian School Lunch Project.
Last year, the programme supplied 4,104 students with over 190,000 nutritious, cooked lunches across 30 schools in the state. Principals and teachers said that so far, the project has been a positive experience, as it not only gave students access to a healthy lunch, but also promoted healthy eating and the opportunity to try new foods.
Some schools have found added benefits to the programme, such as linking it to wider curriculum subjects like hospitality training and leadership opportunities.
Two thirds of school staff surveyed found that the School Lunch Project had helped students build on social
Many within the school community said that the School Lunch Project had helped families who experienced financial strain. Some students said that they were aware it could be a child’s only meal in some cases.
School Lunch Project Manager, Julie Dunbabin, said the programme had been a team effort.
“This was an ambitious task made possible through collaboration, a shared vision and commitment from all organisations and individuals involved,” said Dunbabin.
Tasmanian schools. Many said they would be happy to pay approximately AUD $3 per lunch, and that a gold coin donation could be an effective way to keep the programme operating.
Dr Kim Jose from the Menzies Institute said that although there were obstacles to setting up the programme and providing free lunches in schools, such as dietary restrictions or sufficient staff to run the programme, it had been greatly received by the entire state school community.
connections, whilst many students said they enjoyed being able to eat lunch with friends.
Students also said that the lunches were filling, and it was something to look forward to three days a week. However, some said they would prefer more involvement in choosing and preparing the food.
The School Lunch Project has also been a hit with parents, as almost three-quarters of respondents said their child ate the free lunches on the days available. Almost half of the parents surveyed still decided to pack food on the days of the project, ‘just in case’ there was an issue with their child’s lunch or if they were still hungry.
The School Lunch Project menu had been designed by dietitians from the Tasmanian Department of Health with input from chefs. Meals are provided to schools between one and four days a week for years one and two. Local ingredients are used where possible and delivered directly to schools. Schools can also choose to prepare the lunches on-site.
The cost of the programme has remained a balancing issue to manage. Since the project was introduced in 2022, the price to prepare each lunch has increased from AUD $3.03 to $5.23 in the span of 12 months. The overall cost, however, has dipped from AUD $11.55 to $9.98 as more schools have joined the programme.
A majority of parents said they would be willing to contribute towards the costs of the programme, especially if it meant that the programme could continue across
“With the commitment by the Tasmanian Government to extend the School Lunch Project to include a total of 60 schools in 2025, the Menzies evaluation team has made recommendations to strengthen the implementation and evaluation of the expanded project,” said Dr Kim.
The Tasmanian State Government has projected that to expand the programme from 30 schools to 60 schools, it would require an additional AUD $14.6 million in funding over two years. This would include capital infrastructure investments of AUD $600,000.
The state Labor party also campaigned for a programme expansion to more schools in the lead up to the Tasmanian State election in March this year. H
Inadequate
NUTRITION IN ECE
Researchers at the University of Queensland have discovered that meals provided in early education and childcare centres in some low socio-economic communities do not meet national dietary recommendations.
Dr Bonnie Searle from the Queensland Brain Institute led a study of 55 mealtimes at 10 Queensland childcare centres in communities where the risk of food insecurity is high.
They found the quality and quantity of food across the board was low, with meals only meeting 75 percent of estimated energy requirements.
“Typically, these childhood education centres are providing food that children easily eat, not necessarily what might be best for them nutritionally,” Dr Searle said.
According to the Australian Dietary
Guidelines, children must consume a wide variety of nutritious foods across the five food groups: vegetables, fruit, grains and seeds, meat, dairy and alternatives to meet nutritional requirements.
“However, we were concerned to find many centres did not provide enough food and frequently provided low nutrition foods such as kabana, crackers and jam or savoury spread sandwiches on white bread,” added Dr Searle.
“Also, the amount of vegetables served ranged from zero to just under a fifth of recommended amounts.”
The concern regarding food quality and quantity was also evident in childcare centres that required
families to provide home-made lunches.
“Either children weren’t coming in with enough food or what they were bringing was nutritionally poor,” Dr Searle said.
“This research shows that the greatest burden of poor nutrition is being shouldered by children in the most marginalised communities.”
Dr Searle also noted that Queensland childcare centres did not have access to free menu planning, with the task often falling on educators with an interest in food.
“When you’ve got children with multiple allergies, tight budgets and limited facilities, it’s hard to expect educators with no nutritional
qualifications and little time to produce a high-quality menu.”
Dr Searle believed that providing healthy and nutritious meals in an early education setting has benefits to young children, their families and broader society.
“Many childcare services are missing an important opportunity to provide food environments that positively influence eating behaviours and food preferences in developing children,” she said.
“Without adequate nutrition it’s harder for children to learn and regulate their behaviour.”
Dr Searle praised programs such as the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) in the United
States, which reimburses child-care centres for providing food to eligible kids.
She said this had been a good working model that could be adopted in Australia, and it had provided targeted financial support to ensure high-quality food is accessible in Queensland’s vulnerable communities.
“We assume we don’t have a hunger problem in Australia because we’re a developed country, but one in six children live in poverty and those children are in real danger of food insecurity.” H
HEALTHY EATINGPromoting
The Heart Foundation’s Tohu Manawa Ora Healthy Heart Award programme is committed to impacting the health and wellbeing of hundreds of thousands of pre-schoolers across New Zealand.
Designed to promote healthy habits in pre-school children, the programme reached 34,000 children across 215 early learning services last year alone and has achieved a significant social return on investment (SROI) in a recent report, which showed that for every dollar invested in the programme, there is a social return of NZD $4.50.
Heart Foundation Nutrition Advisor, Lesley Carter said the first 1000 days of life were a critical period for rapid growth and brain development.
“Nutrition and environmental factors play important roles in growth and cognitive development of the child and affects their lifelong health.
It is about developing a healthy relationship with kai, so they become competent eaters and supporting development of fundamental movement skills through physical activity and play,” said Carter.
“Being exposed to bitter tastes early, and moving through the appropriate food textures with lots of exposure to different vegetables in particular, is key to reducing fussiness and also to developing healthier eating habits as an adult.”
She added that reducing exposure to sugary, salty processed foods was also important to encourage the preference for foods that are more bitter in taste. As the child ages, it is important they can listen to their
hunger and satiety cues and respond to those appropriately.
Having opportunities to participate in active play was another crucial factor raised by Carter, in order for children to learn how to adapt to others and the environment, maximise their gross and fine motor skills, thinking ability and problem solving skills, and continue a love of moving their bodies.
Carter said the purpose was not to teach under-fives about nutrition concepts as research has shown this hasn’t been effective in developing healthy eating habits. Instead, the Heart Foundation has encouraged teachers to teach where food comes from, expose children to vegetables and fruits growing in gardens, plan cooking activities with them and provide an opportunity to try new foods in a non-preassured environment.
“We support teachers with these activities and education for the parents and caregivers so they can provide healthy kai and role model healthy eating habits that children can then experience and learn from.”
To promote the best heart health in children through healthy eating and physical activity, Carter said nutritional advisors can provide support for early childhood education providers to create the best outcome.
The recent independent evaluation of the Tohu Manawa Ora Healthy Heart Award by ImpactLab explored the programme’s social, economic, and health benefits, including improved physical health, reduced
healthcare costs, and improved educational outcomes.
Head of Prevention at the Heart Foundation, Justine Munro, said the award had demonstrated a substantial social return on investment, and the programme had exemplified the power of prevention and early intervention.
“The evaluation has affirmed the programme directly contributes to improved oral health, physical activity and reduced diabetes for tamariki and indirectly contributes to improved health equity, nutrition, food exposure and physical activity, promotion of lifelong wellbeing and positive health behaviours, reduced cardiovascular disease and sugar consumption.”
Munro said having reached so many children over the past 22 years had been a testament to the dedication of early learning services, teachers, parents and the Heart Foundation’s team of Nutrition Advisors.
“This achievement signifies a commitment to nurturing the health and wellbeing of our children from a young age.”
Munro said it was rewarding to see the programme’s lessons come to life.
“Our team have seen children around the country, trying new foods, taking on adventurous play, and developing key skills, like food preparation and balance.” H
Alternative
MODEL CERTAINTY
The Ministry of Education has worked towards the development of an alternative model for its Ka Ora Ka Ako programme, to deliver suitable nutritious lunches to students in schools and kura from the beginning of Term 1 2025.
Ka Ora Ka Ako has undergone a significant shakeup over the past year, following the Coalition Government’s election promise to tackle issues facing the programme.
Associate Minister of Education, Hon David Seymour, has said this is a major milestone for the programme.
“I acknowledge this is a very important project at this time due to the current cost of living and food insecurity, which impacts the most vulnerable children,” said Seymour.
“I am excited for the market, not just because of the commercial opportunity in this challenging
continued discussions in order to gather more information before any final procurement decisions are reached.
Successful enterprises across the food supply chain are expected to be confirmed in October, where from November onwards, the Ministry will work with schools, kura and successful suppliers to implement the new model.
Education outlined how essential it was to get the right balance and cater to all students.
“It is important that the lunch menu is healthy, palatable, and delicious for children. Special meals will be provided for students with standard special diet needs such as common allergens and preferences, e.g. dairy-free, vegetarian, halal etc.”
The Ministry also has a view that it will work with suppliers to aggregate volume and lower the price of produce and food items used in seasonal recipes.
“The standardisation of ingredients and produce will allow us to leverage buying power with producers and manufacturers.”
economic environment but because it supports some of New Zealand’s most vulnerable children.”
Registration of Interest for the Alternative Provision Model closed in late August this year, which was for meal providers, wholesalers and distributors, food manufacturers and producers to register their interest in being part of the alternative provision model from early next year. Schools and kura that receive lunches were not involved in this procurement process.
The Ministry of Education has received 122 responses from the Registration of Interest, and has
The Ministry has recognised that every school and kura operates differently, and the Alternative Provision Model will consider the needs and aspirations of schools and Kura.
There have been calls for the new model to highlight the importance of meals that reflect nutritional guidance, so that children receive healthy lunches that contribute to their daily nutritional needs and allow for flexibility and balance across the school week. The Ministry has also expected it to have standardised recipes with ingredients aligned to seasonality.
In a statement, the Ministry of
In the 2024 budget, the Government announced a NZD $2.93 billion dollar investment to lift educational achievement. Of this, NZD $478 million was allocated to operate the Ka Ora, Ka Ako programme for another two years, which included NZD $8 million to introduce a targeted early childcare food programme.
Minister of Education, Hon Erica Stanford, said that these investments, together with the other investments the Government has made in education, demonstrated the Government’s commitment to raising student achievement.
“Education has the power to change lives. We want every child to have the opportunity to gain the skills and qualifications they need to achieve their potential,” said Stanford. H
Star System
INTRODUCED
The Government has announced its intention to introduce the Stepped Attendance Response (STAR) system into schools in an attempt to bring students back to the classroom and tackle truancy.
The programme was announced by Associate Minister of Education
David Seymour, who said it had become a major issue for the education system.
“Any student who surpassed a clearly defined threshold of absences would prompt an appropriate and proportionate response from both their school and the Ministry,” Seymour said.
Seymour highlighted the fact that New Zealand’s attendance rates were below both national and international standards.
In 2023, 80.6 percent of students in England and 61.6 percent of students in Australia were attending schools based on a measure similar to New Zealand’s Term Two regular attendance rate, which stood at only 47.1 percent.
Seymour emphasised the
magnitude of the issue and said it should be a top priority to fix it.
“If left unaddressed, there would be an 80-year shadow cast over those who missed out on education in their youth. They would be less capable of working, less able to participate in society, and more likely to depend on benefits. That’s how serious this is.”
The main purpose of the STAR system was to ensure that no child was left behind. He said that every stakeholder (students, parents, teachers and schools) had an important role in addressing attending issues. Under the plan, every school will be tasked with developing its own STAR system specifically tailored to its community needs.
Since landing the attendance portfolio, Seymour has visited numerous schools to assess how the problem was being addressed. He said that while some schools had effective
systems in place, there were many who were struggling with the ongoing consequences of attendance issues.
As of the 2026 school year, every school will be required to have an attendance management plan based on the STAR system. The Ministry of Education will collaborate with schools, the Attendance Service, and various Government and nongovernment agencies to simplify the process.
The Ministry will also provide best practice templates and toolkits to assist schools with handling student absences based on their underlying causes.
Seymour said he couldn’t stress enough how important it was that schools set a positive example by avoiding teacher-only days during term time. He said that under current regulations and union agreements, teacher-only days were only permitted
outside of term time unless prior authorisation had been granted by the Minister of Education.
The Ministry has also been instructed to gather data on when schools were fully open or closed for instruction throughout the day and for each year group during term time. Seymour added that it was vital for the entire education system to function cohesively to ensure that students valued education and that any lost instruction time was recovered.
Additionally, Seymour has directed the Ministry to take a more proactive approach in prosecuting attendance violations, reserving the option to consider an infringement scheme if other efforts proved ineffective.
With more accurate and timely data becoming available, the next step in improving attendance would involve a deeper analysis of why students were
not attending school.
Seymour had also tasked the Ministry of Education, in partnership with the Ministry for Social Development, Oranga Tamariki, Police, Kainga Ora, and Te Puni Kōkiri, to establish strong informationsharing agreements so that staff could provide the necessary support once a student was identified as needing assistance.
“Nearly every aspect of an individual’s adult life is shaped by the education they receive as a child. If we want to improve social outcomes, we can no longer afford to ignore the truancy crisis. This Government has set ambitious targets to address attendance, and a bold approach is essential for the future.” H
