Tuckshop menus: Prices at costly school canteens hard to swallow

COSTLY school canteens are eating into parents’ wallets with pricey purchases triple the supermarket price — and the price of a basic salad as high as $9.

Malvern Valley Primary School students, Jess 11, Jonathan 9 and Tess 11 enjoy the food at their school canteen. Picture: Rebecca Michael

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COSTLY school canteens are eating into parents’ wallets with the price of a basic salad as high as $9.

A Herald Sun analysis of tuckshop menus found some schools charging $2.50 for a party pie, $5 for a cheeseburger and $6.50 for gluten-free pasta.

A salad platter at Rosanna Primary School costs $7.50 with the price bumped to $9 if chicken or tuna is added.

Principal Heather McIntosh blamed the cost on the time it took to make the salads.

She said rolls and sandwiches, priced between $1.50 and $6.50, were more popular.

“The human resources factor for our salad platters is the one thing relevant to the cost,” Ms McIntosh said.

“Our school has healthy options on our canteen menu and we’ve not had any direct (complaints) from parents.”

Jess, 11, Jonathan, 9, and Tess, 11, enjoy the food at their school canteen. Picture Rebecca Michael.

Other pricey purchases on canteen menus include a ­gluten-free pie at $6.50 and a Kiwi fruit at $1.50 — triple the supermarket price.

Parents Victoria executive officer Gail McHardy called on canteens not to inflate their prices to bolster “underfunded” school budgets.

“Policy says that canteens cannot run at a loss, but equally we believe they shouldn’t make huge profits,” she said.

“As always, schools need to be aware of their families’ situations and cater accordingly.”

The analysis showed a number of schools now offer certified halal hotdogs, chicken nuggets and burgers.

Malvern Valley Primary School students, Jess 11, Jonathan 9 and Tess 11 enjoy the food at their school canteen. Picture: Rebecca Michael

Others are swapping fatty favourites for rice paper rolls, vegetable frittatas and Greek salads. Lactose-free chocolate milk, gluten-free vegie chips and coconut water are also on offer.

All food sold at Malvern Valley Primary School’s canteen, in Melbourne’s southeast, is priced at $4 or under.

The menu includes summer salads, homemade soup and sushi rolls but also hotdogs, pies and dim sims. Principal Gaylene Fehlberg said the school decided not to banish “garbage grub” from its menu in a bid to teach children to choose healthy.

“If you take everything unhealthy away, then as soon as the kids go into another environment, they’ve got no skills to make good choices,” she said. “It’s not about making a healthy choice when everything is healthy.”

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@moniquehore