Nova Scotia opposition pushes for universal school lunch program

New data highlights how more than one in five Nova Scotia households are food insecure, prompting opposition parties to renew calls for a universal school lunch program.

“Nova Scotians that are hungry right now can’t wait any longer,” said Zach Churchill, Nova Scotia’s Liberal leader.

Churchill told reporters a universal lunch program would help keep kids fed during the school day with healthy food and take the financial pressure off families struggling to make ends meet.

“I think the point of a school lunch program is actually equity — that kids are on a level playing field,” said Claudia Chender, Nova Scotia’s NDP leader.

Most schools in Nova Scotia offer breakfast but so far, the government has not introduced a province-wide lunch program.

“We are looking at bringing in a lunch program but we’re looking to work with our federal counterparts on that as well,” said Brian Wong, the minister of advanced education, speaking on behalf of the minister of education Thursday.

“Our previous government had eight years in order to bring in a lunch program and failed to do so, we’re absolutely working on it,” Wong said.

When Churchill was asked why the lunch program wasn’t brought in during his time in government he said the Liberals did expand the breakfast program and increase education funding.

“It was our plan to also bring in a lunch program and now we’re taking up that cause in opposition,” he said, noting how they’ve brought forward a bill to do that in the legislature twice.

“And we’ll keep doing that until the government hopefully approves it,” Churchill said.

Statistics Canada data analyzed by the research program Proof shows in 2022, 6.9 million people in 10 provinces, including almost 1.8 million children, lived in food-insecure houses.

Rates of food insecurity were highest in the Atlantic provinces:

• 23.6 per cent in P.E.I.
• 22.7 per cent in New Brunswick
• 22.5 per cent in Newfoundland and Labrador
• 22 per cent in Nova Scotia

Prince Edward Island has a universal school lunch program.

Lisa Roberts, executive director of Nourish Nova Scotia, said P.E.I.’s program is thanks to significant government investment and a pay-what-you-can approach. In that province, families can contribute to the program.

“Nobody can see in the cafeteria lineup if a family has paid $1 for the meal, or $4 for the meal or nothing for the meal,” said Roberts.

She noted how in Nova Scotia, school food programs aren’t all rolled out the same.

“Some schools have cafeterias, some don’t,” Roberts said. “We haven’t really tackled it yet with a systemic approach.”

Percentage of people living in food insecure households in the 10 provinces, by severity, 2022. (Source: Proof)

A provincial spokesperson said the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development is working with the federal government to achieve a universal lunch program for Nova Scotia.

“Federal funding for this program is an incredible opportunity and Nova Scotia wants to make sure that we leverage that,” said Barbara Ferguson, adding the province is well-positioned to have a program up and running.

“We are very eager to see this program come to fruition and have been laying the groundwork to make this happen, Ferguson said.

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