School meals still under par, research shows
• Children say that being hungry at school leaves them distracted and unable to concentrate
The size and quality of school meals deteriorated during the coronavirus pandemic and they continue to fall short of the government’s nutritional targets, research from the University of Johannesburg shows.
The national schools nutrition programme (NSNP) provides meals daily to 9.6-million children. This stopped when schools were closed in March 2020, shortly after SA identified its first cases of Covid-19.
School meals resumed after a legal challenge compelled the education department to continue providing meals even when schools were closed, but the delivery of food remained disrupted for many children.
Children participating in the research said they previously received bigger, more varied, and tastier school lunches. Being hungry at school left them distracted and unable to concentrate on what was being taught.
“In addition to the impact on learning, not receiving food at school or not having enough also affected children’s emotional wellbeing. They commonly expressed feeling sad and disappointed by the quality and quantity of food they received at school during the pandemic,” said the researchers in a report released on Wednesday. Menu analysis showed their meals provided 10% to 27% of the recommended daily allowance (RDA) for key nutrients. The lunches supplied by the NSNP should provide between 25% and 30% of a child’s RDA of macro- and micronutrients.
While the national education department provides menu guidelines, the provision of school meals is managed at provincial level, and there is considerable variation in how they procure supplies and the quality and variety of food provided to school kitchens.
In Gauteng, for example, the recent addition of chicken livers with rice to the school lunch menu had improved the provision of vitamins A and B12, the research found.
The R9.2bn NSNP covers all children attending schools in the poorest communities, as well as some pupils at schools in betteroff areas, and is augmented in four provinces by a breakfast programme provided by the Tiger Brands Foundation.
Providing school lunches that were appetising, culturally acceptable and nutritious in the face of rising food prices and limited kitchen infrastructure was challenging. Partnerships with the private sector could help fill the breach, said University of Johannesburg researcher Hema Kesa. Schools generally followed the lunch menus set by the provincial education departments, but the quantities varied and little fruit was provided.
“They need to be improved to meet the RDAs, but the good news is they are augmented nicely by the Tiger Brands breakfasts (in the provinces that receive them),” she said.
Researchers interviewed 182 children aged 10 to 12 attending schools in Gauteng, Western Cape, North West and KwaZuluNatal. They also interviewed 36 principals, teachers and food handlers at schools.
Principals reported that lateness and absenteeism dropped significantly when school meals were provided, and that they improved behaviour and academic performance, said Kesa. The education department will be extending the school nutrition programme to include breakfast, thanks to an additional R1.5bn that has been allocated by the National Treasury over the medium-term expenditure framework, said education deputy director-general for sector care and support services Granville Whittle.
“We acknowledge inefficiencies in the programme and that more should be done to innovate and improve the quality of food on the programme,” he said.