‘Go make a Marmite sandwich’: Luxon responds to school lunch backlash

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has hit out at parents unhappy about the new school lunches saying they should just “go make a Marmite sandwich and put an apple in the bag”.

It comes after multiple complaints about the lunches, including the untimeliness of delivery; unsealed containers leaving food open to contamination; burnt food and lunches not turning up.

Luxon told Newstalk ZB’s Mike Hosking if parents continue to be dissatisfied with the lunches, they should pack them themselves.

“If you really are unhappy with it, for God’s sake, go make a Marmite sandwich and put an apple in a bag just like you and I had.”

A school lunch described as 'unidentifiable pasta ball and lentils'.

Luxon said he would rather the state not have the responsibility of feeding students.

“I think parents should take responsibility for feeding their own kids, I’d rather the state not have to do so, it should be a parental responsibility.

“The fact is that kids are actually coming to school with no lunch and I’m not willing to let them go hungry.”

Luxon admitted some of the lunches were “not up to scratch” and said he had asked Associate Education Minister David Seymour – who heads the revamped programme – to keep on chasing the issues down.

“I have every confidence that he’s going to get it sorted.”

Last month, Luxon told ZM that his favourite Kiwi classic dish was the Marmite and chip sandwich.

“I would encourage and exhort all of you to get Marmite and chip sandwich back on track.”

Luxon’s comments come as Seymour continues to face mounting pressure over the rollout of the initiative.

Seymour reformed the Healthy School Lunches programme last year, saying it would save taxpayers' dollars.

For most schools, the new programme under contractor the School Lunch Collective started rolling out in Janurary, with several schools reporting problems, including parents being asked to pack extra food for their children after some school meals didn’t turn up.

There have also been multiple instances where schools were forced to purchase replacement food – such as pizzas, pies and small containers of teriyaki chicken – because the meals had not arrived on time at schools.

Meanwhile, Seymour told RNZ: “At some point, we need to have a reality check here. These are free meals being paid by the taxpayer, they are very good according to many of the people receiving them.”

When launching the scheme last year, the Act leader said the revised programme brought the cost of each meal down to $3 and would, on paper, save taxpayers more than $130 million a year without sacrifices to quality and nutrition.

“There have been some challenges, which we have a track record of overcoming, and at some point, you’ve got to have reference to the other 75% of parents paying for their kids’ lunches.”

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