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Schools

Food and Nutrition

Food and Nutrition in Schools

Nutrition plays a key role in healthy child development. Well-nourished children are more likely to get the energy and nutrients they need to grow, be active, stay physically and mentally healthy and do well at school.

Well-nourished students have:

  • more attentiveness,
  • increased academic success,
  • less behavioural problems, and
  • increased attendance.

Schools should follow the principle “first, do no harm” and ensure that the learning environment is always safe.  Create an atmosphere in which students of all body shapes and sizes, abilities, and backgrounds feel accepted, comfortable, and free from harassment.  Be aware of issues such as food insecurity and poverty, food allergies and sensitivities, eating disorders and weight preoccupation and social and cultural practices in order to ensure sensitivity to the topics presented. 

Whole School Approaches 

The school food environment can impact students’ ability to achieve health and well-being. Nourished students are better prepared to learn, play and grow.

The school food environment includes components that are within your control such as the foods that are offered and sold at school, the language used to talk about food, and other elements that often involve food within your school such as rewards, celebrations and fundraisers. 
Creating a healthy school food environment helps encourage students to create positive food and eating attitudes, skills and behaviour for life. The benefits of creating a positive school food environment are endless.

 

For more tools and resources about school food programs and creating a supportive nutrition environment, check out BrightBites. There you can find a variety of 

Check out the Canada’s Food Guide Toolkit for educators for more information about creating a supportive environment.

School leaders have a role to play in ensuring that all publicly-funded elementary and secondary schools in Ontario are complying with the nutrition standards for foods and beverages sold in schools, as outlined in theOntario School Food and Beverage Policy (SFBP or PPM 150). The policy applies to food and beverages sold:

  • in all venues on school property such as cafeterias, vending machines and tuck shops
  • through all programs, including catered lunch programs, and
  • at all events on school property, including bake sales and sport events.

The nutrition standards do not apply to lunches or snacks brought from home. 

School leaders are encouraged to:

  • Refer to internal school board policies related to food and nutrition and the School Food and Beverage Policy.
  • Be aware of the food safety requirements in schools.
  • Refer school staff, volunteers and food service providers to learn more information about the policies and standards for food and beverages sold in schools (English / French).
  • Read the Ministry of Education School Food and Beverage policy guides (English / French) that will help schools and school boards implement the policy and support healthier schools.

For additional details about the policy, read the policy/program memorandum School Food and Beverage Policy (PPM 150).

Students come to school hungry for a variety of reasons i.e. rushed mornings, early buses, taking care of siblings, extra-curricular activities, no access to food at home, grocery day is tomorrow, sleeping in, early drop off, etc. No matter the reason, hunger can impact children’s ability to learn, work and play at school.

Hunger can temporarily be addressed by providing access to food. Schools often offer food access initiatives to address hunger, such as student nutrition programs.

Student Nutrition Programs (SNPs) provide universal access to nutritious breakfasts, morning meals, and snacks to students in elementary and secondary schools.
Student Nutrition Programs:

  • Increase food access and offer nutritious foods, including vegetables and fruit.
  • Support student learning, growth and development, and overall physical and mental well-being.
  • Promote a sense of belonging by bringing people together.
  • Promote food literacy through student involvement and curriculum connections.

Eat Well to Excel – Simcoe County

Eat Well to Excel is a non-profit local partnership committee that supports volunteer run breakfast, morning meal, lunch, and/or snack programs for children and youth in all of our schools in Simcoe County.

Student Nutrition Program Muskoka

Student Nutrition Community Partnership; Muskoka District is a non-profit local partnership committee that supports volunteer run breakfast, morning meal, lunch, and/or snack programs for children and youth in some schools in the District of Muskoka.

Safe Food Handling Training for Student Nutrition Programs

The Safe Food Handling Training Course for Student Nutrition Programs has been specifically developed for volunteers supporting breakfast, morning meals and lunch programs. This program has been recognized by the Ministry of Health (MOH) to be acceptable at all school sites offering student nutrition programs. The training is not approved for other settings such as school cafeterias or teaching programs.

Supporting Resources:

While student nutrition programs can help to improve food access for students, they do not solve the problem of household food insecurity which is inadequate or insecure access to food at the household-level due to financial constraints.

Food insecurity can look like:

  • worrying about running out of food and/or limiting food selection
  • compromising the quality and/or quantity of food eaten
  • missing meals, reducing food intake and/or going day(s) without food

Food insecurity is also an indicator of financial hardship, because by the time you are food insecure you are also struggling with other basic needs.

Income solutions to address food insecurity are also needed. Learn more about household food insecurity and what you can do to take action.

Released June 2024, the federal policy describes the long-term vision for implementing theNational School Food Program and outlines key principles including: creating accessible, health promoting, inclusive, flexible, sustainable, and accountable school food programs.  
The policy objectives include:

  • Work progressively towards the long-term goal of universal access.
  • Expand investment in school food so that programs can operate sustainably.
  • Help children meet their nutritional and health needs, develop food behaviours and attitudes, as well as food and nutrition knowledge and skills.
  • Promote programming that is culturally appropriate, relevant and inclusive.
  • Create opportunities for local economies and reflect on local and regional circumstances.

A healthy school includes activities that promote a positive food and nutrition environment. Consider the following activities as part of your health and well-being action plan:

Enhance Your Student Nutrition Program:

Ensure the Student Nutrition Program follows the Student Nutrition Program nutrition guidelines. Collect student feedback and involvement in the program, make improvements to the logistics of the program and what choices are offered. Encourage volunteers to take a certified food handler training certification.

Garden, Grow and Learn

Involve students in hands-on activities with plants, seeds, soil and foods. It can help expose students to a variety of foods and new experiences. Consider growing seedlings in the classroom, starting a grow tower, visiting a farm or greenhouse, planting a vegetable garden, etc.
Garden, Grow, and Learn resource (PDF)

Food Preparation and Cooking

Involve students in food preparation and cooking at school to help expose students to a variety of foods and new experiences. Learning to prepare food builds self-esteem, confidence and a sense of achievement while developing valuable life skills. Consider visiting a grocery store or offering the You’re the Chef program to students, etc.

Fundraising

There are a variety of fundraising activities that occur in schools. Some are led by educators, school council, parents, etc. Catered lunches (pizza day, sub days, etc.), selling food items, bake sales, meal events at local restaurants, etc. often focus on promoting foods that are low in nutrients.

  • Engage school councils and fundraising committees in health promoting fundraising initiatives and include non-food activities on school fundraising plans.
  • Consider non-food items or events to help raise funds for the school.
  • Examples: dance-a-thon, walk-a-thon, poinsettia or magazine sales, or fundraise with fruit andvegetables like oranges or grapefruit or Fresh from the Farm fundraising.
  • Consider how many fundraisers is appropriate based on the unique needs of your school community.

Rewards and Celebrations

Rewarding students with food can lead to unintended negative consequences for their relationship with food. Offering food as a reward disrupts a student’s ability to recognize their own hunger cues and promotes the belief that food must be earned. Consider non-food rewards such as positive recognition, extra outdoor time or activities or other non-food incentives.

Educator and Classroom Resources

Educators play an important role in encouraging students to develop a lifelong positive relationship with food by teaching nutrition in a positive way.  Building food skills and familiarity with a variety of foods is one of the best ways that nutrition education can support students to feel positive about eating and learn to enjoy nutritious foods, over time and at their own pace.

To help create a classroom environment that reinforces food and nutrition curriculum: 

Health Unit Programs and Services 

You're the Chef (YTC) is a cooking program designed to help students develop the skills and confidence necessary to prepare healthy and tasty recipes.

For Students, Parents and Families

There are many ways for students to engage in school food and nutrition initiatives, such as:

  • Create and maintain a school/community garden or greenhouse. 
  • Support school-wide campaigns i.e. The Great Big Crunch.
  • Create and support youth-led social justice initiatives about food industry marketing or household food insecurity.  
  • Promote water in the school through installation of hydration stations.
  • Involve students in planning and implementing changes to the student nutrition program to ensure foods offered meet the nutrition guidelines as well as student preferences, cultural diversity and food safety requirements.
  • Encourage student-led initiatives to promote and improve cafeteria food and the social environment.

There are many ways for parents, caregivers, and families to engage in school food and nutrition initiatives that help create a positive food and nutrition environment, such as:

  • Pack litter-less lunches to support eco-schools initiatives and nutritious food choices.
  • Take the You’re the Chef leader’s training to offer food skills program to students.
  • Participate in school council discussions and decisions related to fundraising and hot lunch programs to ensure diversity, equity and inclusion.
  • Rethink school and classroom celebrations. Include food, movement, music and special activities.

Resources to share with parents/families include:

Choose from the sample newsletter inserts below to share key messages with parents/families of elementary school students:

Cooking is a great family activity!

Cooking together is a great way to share family traditions, spend quality time together and learn some skills! Kids learn about food through their senses (sight, touch, smell, hearing and tasting). Teach them about kitchen and food safety. Keep it simple and give them tasks that can help with. Let them measure and stir ingredients and cut fruit and vegetables as they get older. Don't expect your children to eat it. Your kids will be more interested in cooking if they know there is no pressure to try everything they make. Over time they will get more comfortable with different foods and will try something new when they are ready.

Looking for more information? Call Health Connection at 705-721-7520 or 1-877-721-5720 or visit the health unit’s website at www.simcoemuskokahealth.org.

School lunches – what is your role?

Everyone plays a role in student lunch times.

Parents/guardians choose what foods to provide. Grocery shopping, food choices and meal planning are adult roles. As they get older, your child can take a more active role.

Children choose whether and how much to eat from what was packed. Respect your child’s decisions. Let them eat food in the order they choose. Trust your child when they tell you they are full, or they are hungry for more.

Schools/educators choose when and where food is eaten during the school day. The school schedules meals and snacks at regular and consistent times and allows access to water between meals.

Looking for more information? Call Health Connection at 705-721-7520 or 1-877-721-5720 or visit the health unit’s website at www.simcoemuskokahealth.org.

The Power of Family Meals

Family meals are important. Children learn to eat different foods by watching and learning. Having a meal is more than just eating – it’s a time for everyone to connect.

  • Make your dinner table a tech-free zone. Try to limit screens, phone call or texting.
  • Keep mealtime positive and avoid pressuring children to eat. Trust your child to choose whether and how much to eat from what is provided.
  • Encourage everyone to contribute to the conversation. Give everyone a turn to talk, without being interrupted. Talk about what’s going on at school or work, tell jokes, or discuss current events.
  • Give everyone a role to help with clean up.
    It can be hard to eat together when life gets busy. Try having at least one meal together each week.

Looking for more information? Call Health Connection at 705-721-7520 or 1-877-721-5720 or visit the health unit’s website at www.simcoemuskokahealth.org.

Feeding Hungry Children

Children come to school hungry for a variety of reasons i.e. rushed mornings, early buses, taking care of siblings, extra-curricular activities, no food at home, sleeping in, early drop off, etc. No matter the reason, hunger can impact children’s ability to learn, work and play at school.

Student Nutrition Programs in schools provide universal access to nutritious breakfasts, morning meals, and snacks to students. Contact the office to find out what is available at your child’s school.

To find out about other local food programs and services available in your community, contact 211 Ontario online, by text or call for support.

Choose from the sample newsletter inserts below to share key messages with parents/families of secondary school students:

Are too many sugary drinks affecting your teen’s health?

What your teen drinks each day has a major impact on their health. Healthy brains need to stay hydrated to learn and concentrate. Water is the best option! Water is needed for health, to quench your thirst and stay hydrated.

Sugar sweetened drinks like pop, juice, and fruit drinks do not provide the same benefits when it comes to staying hydrated.

Families play an important role in the choices teens make. Offer water with meals, carry a reusable water bottle and encourage water during sporting activities. You can help your teen make good drink choices by having less sugary drink choices available. Make water your drink of choice instead.

Looking for more information? Call Health Connection at 705-721-7520 or 1-877-721-5720 to speak with a public health nurse or visit the health unit’s website at www.simcoemuskokahealth.org.

Caffeine, Energy drinks and Teens

Caffeine is a stimulant which can increase alertness and give you a boost of energy. It can be found in tea, coffee, chocolate and soft drinks. It can also be added to some foods. Some side effects include insomnia, irritability, headaches, nervousness. Check Health Canada’s website for more information about recommended maximum caffeine daily intake.

Energy drinks are NOT recommended for children and teens because of their high caffeine content. One energy drink could have much more caffeine than 4 cups of coffee and more than what is recommended in a day! Caffeinated energy drinks are now required to have a supplemented food facts table, caution identifier and cautionary statements. Check the label. These products may not be suitable for those under 14 years old, pregnant or breastfeeding or individuals sensitive to caffeine.

For more information, call Health Connection at 705-721-7520 or 1-877-721-5720 to speak with a public health nurse or visit the health unit’s website at www.simcoemuskokahealth.org.

Feeding Hungry Teenagers

Many teenagers come to school hungry for a variety of reasons i.e. rushed mornings, early buses, taking care of siblings, extra-curricular activities, no food at home, sleeping in, early drop off, etc. No matter the reason, hunger can impact a teens ability to learn, work and be active at school.

Student Nutrition Programs in schools provide universal access to nutritious breakfasts, morning meals, and snacks to students. Contact the office to find out what is available at your school.

To find out about local programs and services available in your community, contact 211 Ontario online, by text or call for support.

For More information

For more information, call Health Connection at 705-721-7520 or 1-877-721-7520 or email [email protected].
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