Cork county councillors raise concerns over quality of hot school meals
Social Democrats councillor Isobel Towse said: 'We need to go back to basics and focus on the provision of fresh food.' Picture: Dan Linehan.
Tax payers’ money should not be spent on giving children availing of hot school meals what was termed “ultra processed food”, a member of Cork County Council said at the authority’s meeting last week.
According to Social Democrats councillor Ann Bambury, the expansion of the scheme to include Deis and non-Deis schools was welcome, but she expressed concern about the long term health implications if the meals contained ultra processed food.
“This scheme addresses food poverty by giving children from varying socio-economic backgrounds a hot meal five days a week,” she said.
“Nobody knows what’s happening behind closed doors, and in my view, this scheme isn’t a waste of taxpayers' money if it feeds vulnerable children. Because it's universal, it prevents stigma.
"It is estimated that one in five children living in Ireland is overweight or obese.”
The councillor said that recent research had indicated that hot school meals weren’t as healthy as people had been led to believe.
“Recently, a nutritionist who delved deep into the list of ingredients found up to 57 ingredients in a chicken curry served in a school,” she said.
“I cook chicken curry at home, and I can’t imagine how 57 ingredients are necessary unless you add a whole heap of additives.
According to her party colleague councillor Isobel Towse, it was shocking that there was a lack of knowledge of what was in the hot school meals we were feeding to children five days a week.
"An ingredients list is the bare minimum we need to begin delving into this issue. We need to go back to basics and focus on the provision of fresh food,” she said.
The motion calling on Social Protection Minister Dara Calleary to provide a detailed list of the ingredients in hot school meals in a written response to a letter from the council was passed without division.
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