Nutrition researchers in New Zealand and overseas are calling for the country's Ka Ora, Ka Ako Healthy School Lunches Programme to reach more children as food prices continue to rise.
"We think that expanding Ka Ora, Ka Ako is a fairly low-cost way of helping more families to be able to make sure that their kids are getting a healthy meal at least five times a week," Health Coalition Aotearoa co-chair Associate Professor Lisa Te Morenga told 1News.
"They're our future tax payers, you know we want them to grow up to lead long, healthy, productive lives."
Last month's Budget allocated $323.4 million to extend the initiative until the end of 2024.
Primary and secondary students in school communities that face the most barriers to receiving an education, around 25% of the total student population or around 220,000 students, are eligible.
"It's a wonderful thing, especially at this time, and I just hope it doesn't get taken away from us," Ngāti Toa School principal Kathleen O'Hare said.
O'Hare said there's multiple positive impacts from children receiving cooked, nutritious lunches before their afternoon lessons, including increasing student attendance.
She said families were really appreciative.
"It like fills you up and if you have like no food, you could get fed at school," one boy told 1News.
"Some of us didn't used to bring lunch but now we can still eat," a girl said.
University of Auckland's Growing Up in New Zealand study reports in the past year half of children living in moderately food insecure households, and a third of those living in severely food insecure households, didn't access Ka Ora, Ka Ako.
Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health Adjunct Professor of Nutrition Juliana Cohen has researched school lunch programmes around the world, from educationally-renowned Finland where all students are fed through the country's funded school lunch programme, to the United States where states have different rules around which students can access a free lunch.
She says research has consistently shown an access for all approach benefits students the most.
"Their diets are on average better than if a child brought food from home, their academic performance, including math and literacy scores, are on average higher for all students," she said.
Sunnynook Primary School in Auckland isn't eligible for Ka Ora, Ka Ako but has identified food insecurity is an issue for some households in the community.
"If you don't have a lunch and you have nothing to eat and you're sitting there by yourself, in terms of not having something to eat, it does actually make a difference to that child and their sense of belonging," Principal Virginia Montague said.
Montague said a lack of food shouldn't be a barrier for any child to receive an education.
That's why the school pays for several teacher aides to make lunch for up to 20 students a day, with food donations received from local businesses and some ingredients covered by the school.
Montague said the move had been positive for connecting with students, the school community and ensuring no one goes hungry, but receiving Ka Ora, Ka Ako would benefit more students in the school and the budget for staffing the initiative could be spent elsewhere.
"You're looking up to $10,000 where that money could be used in other programmes such as learning support, could be working with children needing booster programmes or extension programmes," she said.
In a statement, Education Minister Jan Tinetti said ensuring children who face the greatest socioeconomic barriers are fed is a top priority.
'Any further extension would be subject to future Budget decisions,' she stated.
National education spokesperson Erica Stanford said in a statement the party supports the initiative for those that need it but thinks it can be improved through "better targeting".
"We often hear about how much is being wasted on children who do not need the lunches.
"By improving the programme, we believe free lunches could be delivered to more children who actually need it, with fewer lunches wasted," she stated.
Stanford stated the cost of living needs to be reduced and the economy strengthened so people can provide for their own children.
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