Dear John: Give school food trial a chance

Buddhi Wilcox says the Government should at least try a food programme for kids.

On his first day back in office John Key asked for fresh ideas to tackle child poverty.

As an advocate for the Northland region we want to help deliver these fresh ideas.

This is the third in a series of letters from Northland leaders with their ideas on how the Government should be addressing child poverty.

Buddhi Wilcox saw a need for Northland school children to have hot, nutritious meals and has spent the last three years meeting that need.

Dear John,

The issue of child poverty in New Zealand has sadly become a reality that we cannot simply ignore, or hope that "something will happen" or that "someone else will solve it".

The hard facts of the hardships in health and living conditions of many of our country's children can be easily confirmed by speaking to anyone in social services, teachers, and health services.

It is not appropriate to discuss who is to blame, or consider who is at fault.

Apart from the obvious moral injustices of children in New Zealand going hungry or living in unhealthy environments, there is a huge future financial and social cost to the country if this problem is not dealt with now. It is clear that hungry children cannot learn. If this continues over the course of the child's school years, in addition to the lack of qualified and productive graduates, there will no doubt be increased social problems and health problems.

So what to do? The issues are complicated and there is no quick-fix solution.

But practically speaking, it is not too difficult to provide every child, at least initially in low decile schools, with a nutritionally balanced hot meal at lunch time.

The Food for Life programme based in Whangarei has shown that it is possible, with community support, to provide tasty, nutritiously balanced meals to over 1000 children every week. The tangible benefits for the children have been astounding ... and that is with only one meal a week. With government funding this programme could easily be expanded to include all 20,000 children in Northland every day ... or at least the 10,000 who are in decile 1-3 schools .

The solution to permanently end poverty must be found in looking at the reasons why there is poverty in the first place, especially in a country where there is an abundance.

But in the meantime, children are suffering and not receiving the education and opportunities they deserve.

My recommendation to the Government, to at least stop the downward spiral, is to run a trial programme for three years throughout the schools in Northland whereby hot, nutritionally balanced lunches are given to all children in low decile schools and the results monitored and assessed.

Based on what I have witnessed already, I believe that the benefits and positive outcomes of such a programme will far exceed any speculative projections and will lay the foundation required to build a positive, healthy and productive society.

Kind regards,
Buddhi Wilcox,
Founder of Food for Life
Northland

• We want your help: Leave us a comment on Facebook or on our website, send us a message or email reporters@northernadvocate.co.nz with your ideas on how child poverty should be tackled. All feedback will be submitted via Whangarei MP Shane Reti to the Prime Minister's office.