AQW 9978/22-27

Ms Kate Nicholl
Alliance Party
South Belfast

Tabled Date: 12/04/2024
Answered On Date: 26/04/2024
Priority Written: No

Question:
To ask the Minister of Health what consideration he has given to developing advocacy campaigns to support healthier school meals.

Answer:

The current obesity prevention strategic framework, ‘A Fitter Future for All’ (AFFFA), takes an integrated approach to obesity prevention and contains outcomes and actions across the life course for the entire population of Northern Ireland. The latest short-term outcomes, published in 2019, include a number of specific outcomes relating to healthier school meals and healthier eating for children and young people.

The Healthy Food for Healthy Outcomes, launched in 2014 and applying to all grant-aided schools, is the Department for Education’s overarching food in school policy advocating a whole school approach to all food and drinks provided and consumed in schools and developing knowledge and skills in relation to healthy eating and lifestyles. It articulates the policy in relation to all food and drink in schools, support available, roles, responsibilities, and funding. My Department and the Public Health Agency (PHA) works closely with Department of Education through the Food in Schools Forum to continue to advocate for and to support healthier school meals.

Minimum Nutritional Standards have been agreed for all grant-aided schools and childcare settings, applying to both catering and vending. The overall aim of setting nutritional standards is to help address overweight and obesity. These are food-based standards modelled on the Eatwell Guide. The Standards have recently been updated by an expert panel, taking into account the latest evidence and guidance, leading to, for example, increasing fruit and vegetables and wholegrains while decreasing the amount of saturated fat, salt and processed meats. The PHA, the Food Standards Agency (FSA) and safefood have co-funded an implementation lead with administrative support to support healthy eating in schools.

You will also wish to note that work is underway to develop a successor strategic framework, and a public consultation on ‘Healthy Futures – A Strategic Framework to Prevent the Harm caused by Obesity, and Improve Diets and Levels of Physical Activity in Northern Ireland’ closed on 1 March 2024. This seeks to further build on this work and support the availability of, and demand for, healthier food in schools.