CPAG Urges Government To Reverse ‘Funded To Fail’ School Lunch Cuts

The Child Poverty Action Group has today told the Government that reversing cuts to school lunches is an achievable way to address rising child poverty levels in New Zealand.

Official statistics released last week showed an extra 36,600 children are likely to be living in material hardship compared to two years ago.

Speaking to Guyon Espiner on TVNZ’s Q+A on Sunday, CPAG Executive Officer Sarita Divis said she was heartened to hear the Minister of Child Poverty Reduction Louise Upston mention the healthy school lunches programme as a key commitment of this government in tackling child poverty.

This year the Government scrapped the previous model of healthy school lunches, many of which created jobs in local communities. Instead, it switched to a for-profit model delivered under an $85 million annual contract with the School Lunch Collective, a partnership between Compass Group NZ, Libelle Group and Gilmours.

The new lunch programme has a budget of $3 per meal, about $5 cheaper than the previous model.

“One in four children do not have enough food. That could be that they don’t have breakfast and dinner so we need to make sure that the lunch that they receive is nutritious, healthy and delicious so that they do get those educational benefits and those health benefits.”

The new model has been beset by problems, with late deliveries, culturally insensitive food, and a largely repetitive, unappetising menu with questionable nutrition value since its implementation at the start of the school year.

“Under the new scheme it is definitely not delivering, and I challenge anyone to be able to make lunch for $3,” Ms Divis told Q+A, citing studies that showed poor nutrition affected educational outcomes.

“Education is one of the key ways to break the cycle of poverty.”

Ka Ora, Ka Ako only provides for about 40 percent of NZ children living in food poverty and there was a strong argument to not only reverse the cuts, but increase the number of children who receive the meals, Ms Divis said.

“When you do proactive policies like this it can make a difference,” Ms Divis said.

“Reverse those cuts. We think that is really achievable for the government.”

Ms Divis said CPAG was disappointed the Government’s Budget policy statement in December – which gives an early indication about priorities in May’s Budget – had no mention of child poverty.

Under the Child Poverty Reduction Act (2018), the Government is legally required to address child poverty rates in the Budget with specific policies.

Last year, CPAG along with Health Coalition Aotearoa and the NZEI Te Riu Roa, campaigned to stop cuts to the programme with 26,000 people signing a petition to save school lunches.