Until this week, Canada was the only G7 country without a national school food program.
On April 1, Ottawa announced a $1-billion investment over five years for a National School Food Program. The government said the program will provide healthy, nutritious meals to 400,000 kids annually, which is in addition to those already being served by existing provincial, territorial and Indigenous school food programs.
The program also includes investments for First Nations, Métis and Inuit communities to engage with Indigenous partners to co-design nutrition plans that are culturally appropriate.
The government’s commitment is overdue. In 2019, the federal government first released its Food Policy for Canada, which included a promise to invest $1 billion in a national school food program. This promise is only now being addressed.
This investment also addresses a great need. According to 2022 Statistics Canada data, 18 per cent of Canadian families experience food insecurity.
Food insecurity impacts kids’ long-term outcomes. As the government noted in its announcement, studies show that students who consistently consume a nutritious breakfast attain higher grades in reading, math and science compared to students who seldom or never do.
A national, nutritious school food program could also help to bring down Canada’s high childhood obesity levels. An alarming 30 per cent of children aged 5-17 were considered overweight or obese in 2017, the most recent government data available.
If the national school food program ensures kids have access to foods that are consistent with the Canada Food Guide’s Healthy eating at school component, kids will not only consume healthy, unprocessed foods, but may also learn what constitutes a healthy diet.
While education is a matter of provincial jurisdiction, a national school meal program is needed to ensure Canada’s food programs are universal, consistent and high-quality. Currently, provincial and territorial funding for school lunches varies widely, from a low of $0.14 to a high of $3.45 per student, according to the the Coalition for Healthy School Food, Canada’s largest non-profit school food network.
There are also significant inconsistencies between provincial and territorial school food programs. Some provinces and territories only fund breakfast or mid-morning snacks, while others — such as British Columbia, Manitoba, Newfoundland and Labrador and Prince Edward Island — additionally fund lunches.
In addition, the funding and delivery of school food programs can be ad hoc. Many schools across Canada have partnered with non-governmental organizations to access additional funding and/or volunteers to sustain their food programs.
Data from countries that have national food policies suggests that the benefits outweigh the costs.
For example, a 2021 report by The Rockefeller Foundation and Center for Good Food Purchasing found that every dollar invested in the United States’ school meal program provided $2 in health and economic equity benefits.
That report also showed that the US school meal program generated $40-billion in societal benefits by improving kids’ health outcomes, reducing poverty and generating job opportunities.
The US, where states are responsible for education, can serve as a model for Canada. There, the federal Department of Agriculture develops the school food program, and the program is administered by federal and state agencies in partnership with school food authorities.
An investment in a nation-wide school food program should have come sooner. But the adage “better late than never” applies here. This program will provide an important step forward in easing families’ stress, reducing child hunger and improving educational outcomes.
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