Food for Kids the European Way

School meal programs can be the foundation of nutritional health and education for kids across the world. They give children the opportunity to meet key nutritional needs, especially since most programs require serving meals that include the essential food groups, such as dairy, grains, and protein. The Center for Disease Control says that eating breakfast in school is associated with better attendance rates and test scores, adding to academic success as well. 

Across the European Union’s 27 Member States, approximately 18 million children in 139,000 schools have benefitted from new, more nutritional, school lunch programs. Establishments ranging from nurseries to secondary schools are serving children over 60,000 tonnes of fresh fruit and vegetables as they continue to implement these new programs.

Here are some of the goals driving these updates, and why they’re so important for children’s health globally. 

Encouraging Variety in Poland

In February of this year, Poland introduced a decree that mandated the inclusion of more varied food options within public schools and pre-schools. This regulation included the provision and consistent availability of plant-based protein substitutes, focusing on legumes, for both protein and dairy, and the use of vegetable stock instead of meat-based stocks three times a week. 

Schools are also required to serve vegan meals once a week for all students, part of an attempt to reduce the frequency of meat consumption, which is restricted to twice a week under the regulation. In Poland especially, consumption of red and processed meat is frequent. In fact, a 2022 study found that 40% of adults in Poland consumed pork around two or three times a week, amongst other types of meat. 

According to a 2022 study, processed meat overconsumption can lead to increased risk of serious issues such as cancer, dementia, and cardiovascular disease. Reducing meat consumption and introducing a greater variety of foods into diets can help decrease risk of developing or worsening cardiovascular conditions, as well as coming with benefits like supporting better kidney health and immune system function. Providing children with the means to reduce meat consumption allows them to begin developing healthy eating habits at an early age, and avoid serious issues later in life. 

Providing various healthy options in a consistent environment like a school, as well as proper education surrounding nutrition, encourages kids to maintain eating patterns that can then translate into continuing to make healthier nutrition choices as adults. 

Expanding Availability in England

One of the most significant updates to the food system in England has been the recent confirmation of free breakfast programs, a practice that will provide breakfast for students while also requiring new portions of fruits and vegetables in the meals.

Expanding food programs to include breakfast allows children access to important meals both before and during school, further ensuring the availability of nutritional and consistent diets.

Breakfasts are important to children’s academic wellbeing as well, as research shows that kids who eat breakfast at school are less likely to have behavioral problems and perform better on tests. The nutritional standards applied to school breakfasts, like those seen in the government proposal, also ensure that essential nutrients like fiber are made readily available. 

Outside of the free breakfast programs in schools, England has also proposed a number of school food-related policies including increasing fiber content in meals and reducing the availability of sugar. While this measure has not been enacted yet, it will strengthen nutritional standards across the board.

Nutritional variety is also supported by the proposed inclusion of more protein options, like pulses (which are similar to legumes), which expands variety and makes direct protein accessible to dietarily-restricted students. These updates make nutrition available to all students, promoting both health and inclusion, which are critical to the wellbeing of children of all backgrounds. 

Establishing Healthier Diets in the Mediterranean

Ultimately, each new update to food programs comes in response to a push to establish healthier diets in children, the first step in setting them up for healthier futures. Spain recently implemented new standards for school meals that are intended to do just that. 

The updates include menus focusing on a shift to a Mediterranean diet, with a focus on legumes, fruits and veggies, nuts, and whole grains, along with a shift to more seasonal vegetables, intended to support local farmers. This update also comes with adjusted protein intake, emphasizing fish more often, rather than red and processed meats, and reduction of processed foods overall. 

Mediterranean diets have been largely accepted as beneficial to health, often leading to a significantly decreased risk of any cardiovascular issues, as well as cancer and diabetes. According to Harvard Health, one study even found that women who had higher adherence to the diet had a 23% lower risk of death by any cause compared to those who had a lower adherence. 

Spain’s new regulations apply to all schools – private, public, and charter – and are meant to foster healthier diets in children regardless of their socioeconomic status. These changes, and those in Poland and England, are all contributing to the fostering of better, healthier lifestyles and futures for all the children they impact. 

Learning From New Nutrition Standards

Changes underway in school food programs across Europe show how nutrition standards can do more than improve the quality of food children eat. They can expand access to nutritious meals, support learning and well-being where  children engage more in the classroom, and encourage food choices that are  better for both people and the planet. 

Many of these approaches are putting greater emphasis on fruits and vegetables, legumes, nuts, and whole grains, and fish in place of beef, supporting seasonal farmers and reducing reliance on the large-scale beef industry.

What schools serve also matters environmentally. Food production is a significant contributor to greenhouse gas emissions and shifting toward more plant-forward dietary patterns can reduce the environmental footprint of what we eat. eIncreasing fruit, vegetables, legumes, whole grains in schools meals can give students access to nutritious foods while supporting more sustainable eating patterns.

So, not only are these new systems strengthening children’s performance in schools, they are supporting a better environment. By learning more about sustainable food practices, schools can help create healthier communities while also contributing to a healthier planet. 

For more information on food systems and ways to incorporate better food practices into your own lifestyle, look out for more EARTHDAY.ORG articles like this list of alternative proteins that are both sustainable and healthy. 

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