Victorian school’s tuckshop prices the steepest in the nation
Experts are calling for a roundtable into school canteens as research shows Victorian parents pay $1.55 higher than the national average for their children’s meals.
Victoria
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Victorian parents are forking out for the most expensive tuckshop bills in the country, as new data reveals the price of a school canteen lunch in the state is $1.55 higher than the national average.
With the average meal at a Victorian tuckshop costing $8.93 – the equal highest in the nation alongside the ACT – a new survey of 1000 Australian parents found that more than half said it was too expensive to order from their children’s school canteen.
“Many school families that are battling cost-of-living pressures are likely to cut the weekly or monthly school lunch order out or down to save dollars,” said Gail McHardy, chief executive of Parents Victoria.
The findings of the Flexischool survey come amid calls for a national summit to discuss the critical importance canteens play in supporting children’s health, wellbeing and sense of community.
Ms McHardy said outsourcing canteen services was a solution for many schools, due to the complications involved in recruiting volunteers.
Outsourcing canteen services has raised concerns for National Nutrition Foundation co-CEO Margaret Rozman, who said it could lead to menus that did not prioritise good nutrition, and at an increased price.
“More and more Victorian schools are outsourcing their school food provision to external business, like local bakeries or commercial catering companies, or they are cutting the number of days that the canteen service is available,” Ms Rozman said.
“There is a risk in outsourcing school food provision to commercial businesses, as they are outside of the education system and so we can’t be certain they are prioritising nutritious and affordable foods.
“A national Federation Of Canteens In Schools roundtable will bring together all key stakeholders to discuss meaningful solutions for the future of school canteens.
“This will ensure that Australian children have access to nutritious and affordable foods that support their learning and overall wellbeing,” said Ms Rozman.
But Rachel Debeck, CEO of Flexischool, said their research showed that parents who used their school’s canteen or tuckshop twice a week would only spend the same amount of money as someone who packed a lunch everyday.
Flexischool’s research showed parents across the country spend more than 100 hours preparing school lunches at an average cost of $2400 a year, and yet up to $2500 of a household’s food ended up being binned annually.
“That’s a lot of uneaten sandwiches, warm yoghurt, and fruit that’s gone brown,” Ms Debeck said.
She also said some of the most popular items on school canteens’ menus were homemade, such as pasta bolognese and butter chicken.
“Many canteen operators think of their canteens as an extension of a family’s kitchen.
“They have qualified chefs, specialist canteen supervisors, as well as the canteen assistants or managers who get the meals to students,” she said.
Originally published as Victorian school’s tuckshop prices the steepest in the nation
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