Libelle Group liquidation sparks calls for school lunch reforms and local solutions

There are concerns about the school lunch programme's stability with Northland educators wondering what will come next. Photo / Yolisa Tswanya

As the Government insists that school lunches will continue uninterrupted despite the liquidation of major supplier Libelle Group, calls for urgent change are mounting.

Northland school leaders and a teachers' union are calling for changes, including allowing schools to return to local providers.

Last year, the School Lunch Collective won a contract to provide free lunches to about 130,000 students in 466 schools, but this week one of its three members – Libelle Group – went into liquidation.

While Compass Group NZ has stepped in to ensure meals continue to reach students, questions remain about long-term stability and government accountability.

Compass Group last week agreed to acquire the relevant assets of Libelle Group following its liquidation, in order to support the school lunch programme.

Northland education leader Pat Newman said that for now, things in Northland were carrying on as normal, but he had a caveat.

“It is too early to tell. The food they are getting now could have been done last week, these meals are prepared well in advance.”

Northland education leader Pat Newman said for now, things in Northland were carrying on as normal. Photo / NZME

“There were warning signs and now Mr [David] Seymour is not being accountable. There has been disaster after disaster.”

Newman said that at a meeting with Northland principals he attended, there was concern about the programme’s future. “At the moment it’s fine, but the question on everyone’s minds is what happens next.

“The biggest response was laughter, because we told you so Mr Seymour. He was told this would happen from the start, he wouldn’t listen and now he won’t be accountable.”

Newman hopes Education Minister Erica Stanford will take charge of the school lunch programme.

“I hope she takes it over, I believe she will listen and take notice of what people say ... I can’t see how he is not being asked to resign, others have been let go for less.”

Ministry of Education hautū (leader) for operations and integration Sean Teddy said Compass Group NZ has assured it that any disruption will be minimised and the liquidation process will not materially impact on the provision of school lunches.

“Delivery from both Kaitāia and Whangārei central production kitchens has been 100% and we have not received any complaints from Northland schools since Libelle was placed in liquidation.”

Teddy added that the ministry will closely monitor the situation to make sure all commitments to school meal deliveries are met.

“Over the life of the programme, we have had some suppliers cease trading for a range of reasons, including due to tight market conditions. In these cases, the ministry has a business continuity plan to foster assurance for the ongoing delivery of service.

“If a supplier ceases trading, then the plan activates and arrangements for an alternative supplier is put into place. This means that students receive lunches every school day.”

Education union NZEI Te Riu Roa has called for the Government to allow schools to opt back into using in-school community providers amid the issues around the school lunches.

NZEI president Ripeka Lessels said in a survey it conducted, it was found that almost 80% of respondents were not satisfied with the lunches provided.

“The schools that can use local, in-house and iwi providers are vocal about their love and appreciation for locally provided kai, and the positive holistic outcomes it creates for tamariki [children],” Lessels said.

The survey was carried out two weeks ago and principals and area school kaiako (teachers) pointed out the overwhelming differences in quality between their former local providers and the Government’s new ones. Many children were going hungry rather than eating the new food, which then affected their learning.

“This stands in stark contrast to the new, centralised providers, who have delivered wholly unappetising meals – not to mention the ones that haven’t turned up or have been delivered containing melted plastic or so hot they have burnt children, “Lessels said.

“Schools should have the right to opt out of the Government’s disastrous and dangerous lunch provision and return to their former providers, and not one more school should be transferred to the School Lunch Collective.”

Paul Harvey, managing director of Compass Group, said: “Our teams are united in our commitment to providing lunches every school day to tamariki in our communities”.

“Since the unexpected announcement on Tuesday, we have ensured continuity of operations, with over 500,000 meals delivered this week and 97.3% delivered on time.

“This demonstrates how resilient our people are. We are now looking forward, ensuring everyone is supported through this transition.”