Hawke’s Bay families share benefits of free lunch programme, study shows

(From left): Pippa McKelvie-Sebileau, Kapone Richardson-Box, Jahvelle Kendrick, Kendall Ah Kiong and Hastings Girls' High School principal Catherine Bentley enjoying lunch at school. Photo / Warren Buckland

Whānau of students receiving free lunches at school say they are saving more than $60 a week on their shopping.

As a cost of living crisis looms large over the election battlefield, schools in Hawke’s Bay say they are hoping both major parties will see the value in developing Ka Ora, Ka Ako, Aotearoa’s free school lunch programme, further.

Four Hawke’s Bay schools were part of the latest study, undertaken as part of the Nourishing HB: He wairua tō te kai collaboration between University of Auckland and EIT - Te Pūkenga, into the impact of the programme, which currently serves 25 per cent of schools in the most disadvantaged areas.

Hawke’s Bay was selected for the study because, despite being the ‘fruit bowl of New Zealand’, previous investigation in the community has shown poor-quality diets.

“The NZ national health survey estimated that children in Hawke’s Bay had the lowest rate of vegetable intake in the country,” the study said.

Participating families in the study commented on how the programme relieved their financial burden.

“It’s $60 or $70 off your grocery bill, it’s huge,” an anonymous participant was quoted as saying in the report.

It was noted in the study the students themselves were also conscious free lunches in school had alleviated financial hardship at home.

“The majority of participating families (>80 per cent) were experiencing significant financial insecurity; through the introduction of the programme, they reported a reduction in grocery bills and less stress in the morning,” the study said.

Hastings Girls' High School runs an internal model where the food is cooked in-house by their own chef, which school principal Catherine Bentley says is more cost-effective and has shown better results. Photo / Warren Buckland

Hastings Girls’ High School internally provides free breakfasts, soup at intervals and hot lunches daily for its students under Ka Ora, Ka Ako and aids an outside provider for another school, according to principal Catherine Bentley.

“Right from the start, we went for an internal model because we knew we would get better value for money,” Bentley said.

“Because we buy in bulk, I would say if the whānau were cooking what we are cooking, then it would probably cost them at least three times as much.”

“You are probably looking at $20 a day per student, at least.”

She said her biggest concerns were consistency in the quality of food across schools in the programme, not all of which follow the internal model of having their own chef, and the future of the programme as the election heats up.

“What I’d like to see is consistency in the quality of food across the schools and, probably, reassurance that it is not going to become this political football that they throw around.”

Researcher Pippa McKelvie-Sebileau said families noticed the savings they made with school lunches when they compared the difference between their grocery shops during the school term and holidays.

“Those whānau groups really did mention the food security impact and the impact on their household finances,” McKelvie-Sebileau said.

“If we were to take the programme away, the cost of groceries for families would jump up so immediately and enormously that it would be unfeasible for a lot of people.”

She said they also observed some surprising life-long impacts around the types of food students eat and enjoy, and participants in the research found Ka Ora, Ka Ako to be a “mana-enhancing programme”.

Health Coalition Aotearoa (HCA) has submitted a petition to Parliament calling for the programme to be expanded to double its current size.

“The Government agreed to fund the programme until the end of 2024 at its current size – 25 per cent of schools in the most disadvantaged areas. National Party leader Christopher Luxon this week committed to retaining the programme in its current form as long as it represented value for money,” a statement from HCA said.

Prime Minister Chris Hipkins promised that free, healthy school lunches would be “here to stay” if Labour was re-elected.

“The programme is estimated to save a family with two kids, on average, around $66 per week and $2500 per year,” Hipkins said in a statement celebrating 100 million free school lunches delivered on Thursday.

James Pocock joined Hawke’s Bay Today in 2021 and writes breaking news and features, with a focus on environment, local government and post-cyclone issues in the region. He has a keen interest in finding the bigger picture in research and making it more accessible to audiences. He lives in Napier. james.pocock@nzme.co.nz.