No free lunch: The unpalatable politics of the school lunch programme
The new, cut-price school lunch programme will shut out many community providers. But will bulk-supplied meals meet children’s needs? by Colleen Brown ● illustration by Anthony Ellison
It took just a six-month tendering process for the incoming coalition government to pick apart the free school lunch scheme, Ka Ora, Ka Ako, like a fussy child with a sandwich. Images of Associate Education Minister David Seymour sampling a new, cheaper, prototype meal were beamed across the nation in October. Money saved. Increased numbers of children fed. Job done.
Under the scheme’s new configuration beginning this school term, most of the 1013 participating schools and kura must either continue their own “internal” lunch supply system or go with new monopoly “external” provider the School Lunch Collective.
Previously, 156 external providers – from multinationals such as Subway and Pita Pit to small cafes and businesses using school kitchens – were in the market.
The new collective comprises UK-headquartered caterer Compass Group – best known here for hospital meals – Foodstuffs North Island-owned wholesaler Gilmours and tuckshop specialists Libelle Group. It has contracted with the Ministry of Education to supply lunches for $3 a head.
Schools that continue to do their own thing must supply a lunch meeting ministry nutrition requirements and weighing 240 grams for $4 a head. The ministry says the price difference recognises that internal providers don’t enjoy the economies of scale of large suppliers. Those going it alone can obtain supplies from Gilmours, use the collective’s pre-priced recipes, or source local supplies.
Schools may have a choice but it’s a rock-and-a-hard-place quandary. Providers say that without the advantage of bulk supply and economies of scale that the collective enjoys, it will be impossible to cover costs for $4 a head.
Nevertheless, many schools are attempting to stay local. According to the ministry, the School Lunch Collective will feed 127,000 children, internal providers 51,000, and iwi or hapū 8000 each day.
The new regime this year applies in secondary, full primary (Years 1-8) and composite (Years 0-13) schools. Other primary (Years 0-6) schools will be added next year, affecting a further 56,000 children.
Hunger harms
Hungry students struggle to learn – evidence of the multiple benefits of providing a nutritious lunch at school was well established before the then Labour-led government launched Ka Ora, Ka Ako in 2019. For many kids from low-income households or deprived areas, lunch may well be their only guaranteed meal of the day. In the US, England and many parts of Europe, supplied lunches have been part of public education for decades.