Kids join PM for lunch
‘‘Will you have lunch with me?,’’ a beaming Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern asked 460 children at Flaxmere Primary School in Hawke’s Bay.
Children’s faces lit up by the sight of the prime minister serving a free school lunch to the students.
She was met with a strong welcome in the school hall, followed by excited whispers, wiggling toes and the odd wave as she sat on stage.
She was there with Education Minister Chris Hipkins, Police Minister Stuart Nash and local MP Meka Whaitiri to announce that thousands of young students across the country have begun receiving free lunches.
It includes 7000 students at 31 schools based in Hawke’s Bay and Bay of Plenty. The programme also will extend to 21,000 students in 120 schools, including Otago/ Southland by the start of 2021.
‘‘A full stomach makes all the difference to a child’s learning,’’ Ardern said.
She sat with the children during lunch and was offered servings of pasta, chicken, fresh vegetables and corn chips by the excited students.
One young boy blushed and kicked his feet with delight after Ardern personally handed him his food and cutlery.
The lunches are made by local supplier Pure Catering, which produces 460 lunches off-site each week day, with families employed by them to pack the food into school lunch boxes.
‘‘We are making good progress on tackling the long-term challenges that cause child poverty but none of the solutions are instant. Providing a free and healthy lunch at school is one way to help make New Zealand the best place in the world to be a child and to make that difference immediately,’’ Ardern said.
Five schools opted to prepare their own lunches while others had external suppliers. ‘‘The model used by Flaxmere Primary involves wha¯nau as key players in the design and delivery of its lunch programme,’’ Hipkins said.