Hold off on that bulk purchase of Lunchables from Costco because more kids may soon be able to get a free lunch at school.
What happened: Prime Minister Mark Carney said his government’s upcoming budget will make permanent the National School Food Program, which was previously funded for only five years.
- Last year, Ottawa struck agreements with each province and territory to fund school lunch programs until 2027 with the goal of ensuring every student has “access to nutritious food at school.”
- The exact flavour of school lunch programs varies from province to province. For example, P.E.I. offers all K-12 students lunch on a pay-what-you-can model, while Ontario passes funding to local agencies and schools for community-led programs.
Why it matters: The National School Food Program provides meals for around 400,000 kids every year and, according to the federal government, saves the average participating family with two kids up to $800 per year in groceries (not to mention all that time packing lunchboxes).
Yes, but: When it comes to school lunch programs globally, Canada (which was the last G7 country without one) is still playing catch up. Other wealthy countries offer their students truly gourmet experiences.
- Students in France enjoy free or heavily subsidized four-course meals — complete with a cheese course — on a rotating, chef-designed menu.
- In Japan, nearly all schools serve healthy sit-down lunches, which are free for low-income families, and served by other students.
- Schools in Finland and Sweden serve all students free hot lunches, prepared in line with nationally set nutritional guidelines.
What’s next: With permanent funding, provinces and territories now have more certainty that school lunch programs are here to stay. Here’s hoping they come up with some more nutritious and tasty options to serve than cafeteria pizza and fries.—TS