Underprivileged primary school children are about to suffer the same poor service as their intermediate and secondary school peers, with the Government’s announcement today that primary schools are transitioning to the cut price, revised Ka Ora Ka Ako - Healthy School Lunches programme.

The revised version of the school lunch programme, rolled out to secondary and full primary schools in January 2025, saw the Government partner with national consortium the School Lunch Collective to achieve drastic reductions in the programme cost. The new version of the programme is being plagued by a multitude of problems, including delivery of unsafe and unpalatable food, massive wastage of uneaten meals and packaging, and the nutritional quality of the lunches plummeting.

Nutrition experts found the government-funded school lunches are failing nutrition standards. The new lunches now provide only about half the energy recommended for a school lunch. Despite all providers being contractually obliged to meet the Ministry of Education’s Nutrition Standards, none of the 13 meals provided by School Lunch Collective that were examined by nutrition experts met them. This means the lunches are no longer healthy - despite the programme being named the Healthy School Lunches programme.

This is hardly surprising, given the School Lunch Collective members, Libelle and Compass, were failing to consistently deliver good quality lunches under the previous funding model, when they were receiving nearly three times the funding per lunch.

"It’s not a cost saving if it’s not delivering the nutrition our most disadvantaged children need to succeed at school. Under the previous model, schools could choose how they provided lunches to their tamariki, with many walking away from Compass and Libelle to either do it themselves or work with local community businesses. Tamariki got better food for less cost. Our growing teenagers are now getting less to eat and being told to be grateful for it", says Professor Lisa Te Morenga, Health Coalition co-chair and Massey University researcher.

"This Government has prioritised productivity, but hungry, undernourished children cannot learn effectively nor be productive. More than a quarter of children in Aotearoa face poverty and food insecurity - this programme is designed to help those kids. These children are our future workforce; we need to invest in them", says Professor Te Morenga.

"I'm extremely angry and disappointed this government continues to ignore our voices and our evidence of the success of locally provided lunches. Instead, they want to remove what's working to save a few dollars - at the expense of our tamariki. We need to be investing in our tamariki and their future, says Seletute Mila, Tumuaki/Principal of Arakura School.

"The changes to Ka Ora, Ka Ako have set back the progress schools were making in helping New Zealand’s disadvantaged children. The programme must be fixed now- by being appropriately valued for the potential it has to lift our most disadvantaged children out of poverty and to lead healthy, productive lives. This benefits us all. We are calling for this current mean and draconian model to be abandoned. Raise the funding and give communities the flexibility to provide the best nutritious food they can for their tamariki," says Professor Te Morenga.

More information

Reports from schools across Aotearoa reveal serious failures in the revised programme, including:

• Unsafe food: The NZ Food Safety Authority is investigating concerns, as reported by BusinessDesk.
• Lack of allergy-friendly meals: Students with allergies are left without safe options, as reported by BusinessDesk.
• Waste and inefficiency: Unappealing meals are going uneaten, and previous systems to redistribute food to students or charities are no longer happening.
• Excess rubbish: The new system generates more landfill waste than before.
• Poor nutrition: The lack of fruit likely means lower fibre intake.
• Lack of transparency: Schools and families don’t know the actual nutritional value of meals.
• Halal concerns: No clear process ensures meals meet halal dietary needs.
• Late or missing deliveries: Many schools report meals not arriving on time.
• Repetitive and insufficient portions: Meals lack variety and are often too small.
• No direct communication: Schools can no longer work directly with suppliers.
• No student feedback: Tamariki have no way to voice concerns about their meals.

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