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Coalition for Healthy School Food

@chsf_canada

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The Coalition for Healthy School Food is the largest school food network in Canada.
We have 390+ non-profit members and 150+ endorsers in Canada.

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👟#canada🇨🇦 , are you ready to take the Next Steps for School Food?

On October 21, join Brent Mansfield ( @brent.mansfield )Vancouver teacher and LunchLab ( @lunchlabroberts )co-founder, as he runs 200 laps in Ottawa to celebrate the establishment of the National School Food Program and support our call for another $200 million in annual federal funding.

Together, let’s help more children and youth access quality school food!

Visit the link in our bio to discover how you can participate and find campaign resources. We’ll also share the link in our stories!

Thank you to our three organizing partners: The Food Sharing Project ( @foodsharingproject ), Nutrition for Learning ( @nutritionforlearning ) and Ottawa Network for Education ( @onfe_rope )

💬 How will you take part? Let us know in the comments!

#schoolfood #NextStepsForSchoolFood

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👟Canada, êtes-vous prêts à donner un nouvel élan pour l’alimentation scolaire?

Le 21 octobre, joignez-vous à Brent Mansfield ( @runningforschoolfood ), enseignant à Vancouver et cofondateur de LunchLab, qui courra 200 tours à Ottawa pour célébrer la création du Programme national d’alimentation scolaire et appuyer notre demande de 200 millions de dollars de plus par année en financement fédéral.

Ensemble, faisons en sorte que davantage d’enfants et de jeunes aient accès à une saine alimentation scolaire!

Découvrez comment participer et trouvez les ressources de la campagne en suivant le lien dans notre bio. Le lien sera aussi dans nos stories!

Merci à nos trois partenaires d’organisation : The Food Sharing Project, Nutrition for Learning et Réseau d’Ottawa pour l’éducation.

💬 Comment allez-vous participer? Dites-le-nous dans les commentaires!

#AlimentationScolaire #NouvelÉlan by @chsf_canada

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7 days ago

✍️| Many Canadians ask us: why does #Canada need a National School Food Program?

"Implementing a national program covering breakfast and lunch would save household budgets $130 to $190 a month per child for most families. For households with two children, that’s about $3,780 in savings per school year" explain @amberleyruetz PhD, Arrell Scholar alumna and a school food and food policy expert, and Evan Fraser, Director of the @arrellfoodinstitute, in their recent article published today by the Institute for Research on Public Policy (@irpp1972 ).

They add that "unlike temporary financial interventions like the one-time grocery rebate, a national program guarantees sustained relief throughout the academic year, allowing families to focus on other essential needs like housing and utilities. This becomes a much more strategic and long-term solution."

They emphasize that "a national program also has the potential to stimulate the creation of as many as 207,700 jobs. Investments in school meal programs in other countries have led to the creation of additional jobs in #agriculture, #nutrition and program administration. This contributes to economic growth and can reduce unemployment."

Would you like to learn more about the other benefits of implementing a National School Food Program in #Canada?

#cdnpoli #youth #child

Read the article⬇️
https://policyoptions.irpp.org/magazines/january-2024/school-food-program/

Can't click on it? Click the link in our bio! by @chsf_canada

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🍎| #nextstepsforschoolfood

As Brent Mansfield gets ready to run another 200 laps in #ottawa, what could this run inspire in your community?

On October 21, 2026, we would like to invite you to join us and run 1 lap or all 200 laps on the lawn of Parliament ( @ourcommonsca ) of Canada!

We will celebrate the establishment of the National School Food Program and ask the federal government for an additional $200 million in annual federal funding. A recommendation that is part of the Coalition for Healthy School Food Pre-budget submission.

Whether it is a classroom, a school, a community organization, a family, or by yourself, we all can help build momentum so more children and youth can access quality school food in #canada.

If you can't join us, no worries! You can explore ideas and resources to get involved!
We invite you to use our postcards and send it Prime Minister Mark Carney ( @markjcarney )!

We would like to thank our organizing partners and Coalition members :
- The Food Sharing Project,
- Nutrition for Learning and,
- Ottawa Network for Education / Réseau d'Ottawa pour l'Éducation

We thank them for helping bring the #nextstepsforschoolfood run to life!
Discover the run in our bio!

Learn more about the pre-budget submission in one of our stories! by @chsf_canada

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4 days ago

🏙️ | New York City’s experience offers Canadian cities a head start on the tough questions of school food: from meal quality to making it work at scale.

Our latest webinar, “New York’s Universal School Food Programs: Lessons for Canadian Cities,” is ready to watch!

Get a closer look at the people, partnerships and purchasing decisions behind New York City’s school meal programs.

We would like to extend our heartfelt thank you to our speakers:

• Dr. Pamela Koch, EdD, RDN, Mary Swartz Rose Associate Professor of Nutrition and Education, Teachers College, Columbia University ( @columbia )
• Nancy Easton, Founder and Executive Director, Wellness in the Schools ( @wellnessintheschools )
• Nelson Quiles, Senior Director of Policies, Partnerships, and Communication, New York City Public Schools’ Office of Food and Nutrition Services ( @nycschools )
• Stephen O’Brien, Founder and President, SOBx2 Consulting and former director with New York City Public Schools

And to our moderator, Gary Hoyer, Professor of Business and Hospitality Management and Program Coordinator, George Brown Polytechnic ( @gbcollege )!

You can watch the recording through the link in our story! If not, click the link in our bio! Discover all of our webinars on #Seoul, #London and #Berlin.

#SchoolFood #SchoolMeals #NewYorkCity #unitedstates by @chsf_canada

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🗞️ | The Coalition welcomes #Toronto mayoral candidate Olivia Chow’s ( @oliviachow ) commitment to build on the universal mid-morning snack program to provide school lunches to all students if re-elected, a proposal she says would save families an estimated $1,800 per year.

We also thank all the Toronto city councillors who have supported the expansion of school food programs in Toronto over the last few years, making Toronto a global municipal leader, joining #NewYorkCity, #UnitedStates; #Seoul, #SouthKorea ; #Berlin, #Germany, and #London, #England as great cities who prioritize investing in school food programs.

We also thank the other mayoralty candidates Brad Bradford ( @bradfordgrams ) and Chris Alexander ( @chrisfortoronto ) publicly committing to maintain full funding for Toronto’s student nutrition school breakfast programs.

We encourage all candidates to prioritize healthy school food to help students learn and grow, while easing the cost of food for families.

Finally, we would like to thank Codi Wilson, the CTV News ( @ctvtoronto ) team and the CP24 ( @cp24breakingnews ) team for covering school food in Toronto’s mayoral election.

We invite you to read the article! Click the link in our bio and in one of our stories!

#SchoolFood #Toronto #parents #children #youth #families by @chsf_canada

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10 days ago

📊 New report sheds light on school food programs across #Ontario

A first-of-its-kind provincial survey of Ontario’s English-language public schools finds a strong foundation for school food programming, alongside important challenges and opportunities to strengthen programs across the province.

Key findings:
- Nearly 95% of responding schools offer some form of school food program
88% offer snacks, 51% offer breakfast, and 33% offer lunch.
- Schools reported benefits including improved student mood and mental health (76%), concentration and learning (68%), and willingness to try new foods (68%)
- 54% of schools identified insufficient funding for nutritious food as a key barrier; reliance on unpaid labour in schools was also cited as a top challenge.

The survey findings highlight both the diversity and the uneven capacity of school food programs across the province.

The message is clear: there is a strong foundation to build on, and continued investment in sustainable funding, staffing, infrastructure, and program capacity can help address gaps and support the growing needs of students and families in #Ontario.

Thank you to the Loyalist College Centre for Healthy Communities ( @loyalistcollege ), the Ontario Chapter of the Coalition for Healthy School Food, the Ontario Public School Boards' Association ( @opsba_official ), the Ontario Principals' Council ( @opcouncil ), and the Ontario Dietitians in Public Health, and other partners who contributed to this research.

Read the full report to explore the findings and recommendations for the future of school food across the province.
The link will be in one of our stories!

#Ontario #SchoolFood #StudentNutrition #StudentWellbeing #Education by @chsf_canada

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🏙️ New York City, thank you for the inspiration! 💚

Thank you to Dr. Pamela Koch (@columbia ), Nancy Easton (@wellnessintheschools ), Nelson Quiles(@nycschools ) and Stephen O’Brien of SOBx2 Consulting for an incredible conversation about NYC’s universal school meal program.

Your passion and experience gave us fresh ideas for the future of school food in Canada! 🇨🇦

A big thank you to Gary Hoyer for moderating and George Brown Polytechnic - @gbcollege - for co-sponsoring our School Food Around the World city series.

🌍 Curious about school meals in Seoul, London or Berlin? Catch up on those webinars through the link in our bio!

🎥 The New York City recording is coming this week. Stay tuned!

#schoolfood #healthyschoolfood #schoolmeals #newyorkcity #SchoolFoodAroundTheWorld by @chsf_canada

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🏙️ | Happening now: #newyorkcity!

A dynamic conversation is underway at the final stop in our School Food Around the World city series!

Dr. Pamela Koch ( @columbia ), Nancy Easton ( @wellnessintheschools ) , Nelson Quiles ( @nycschools ) and Stephen O'Brien (SOBx2) are discussing New York City’s universal school meal program, from meal quality and partnerships to procurement and delivery at scale, and what Canadian cities can learn from its experience.

🎥 We’ll share the recording this week. Stay tuned!

#schoolfood #schoolmeals #canada #unitedstatesofamerica #newyorkcity by @chsf_canada

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🏙️ Let’s get to know our New York City speakers!

Next week, four school food leaders will join us for the final webinar in our School Food Around the World series.

Swipe through to meet:

✨ Pamela A. Koch, a researcher and educator advancing healthy, just and sustainable food systems - @columbia

✨ Nancy Easton, Founder and Executive Director of Wellness in the Schools - @wellnessintheschools

✨ Nelson Quiles, a leader in policy, partnerships and communications with New York City Public Schools’ Office of Food and Nutrition Services - @nycschools

✨ Stephen O’Brien, a school food consultant and former leader with New York City Public Schools

Together, they’ll share how #newyork City came to offer free school meals across its public schools, what it takes to operate a program at that scale, and what Canadian cities and communities can learn from the experience.

Over the coming days, we’ll help you get to know each speaker and the experience they’ll bring to the conversation.

Stay tuned!

📅 September 30, 2026
⏰ 10:30 a.m.–12:30 p.m. ET
💻 Free virtual webinar on Zoom

🔗 Register through the link in our bio and stories.

#SchoolFood #SchoolMeals #canada #NewYorkCity by @chsf_canada

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Our school food webinar series has taken us to Seoul, London and Berlin. For the final stop, we’re heading to #newyork City.

What does it take to make free school meals available across a city’s public schools? And once access is in place, how do you keep improving the food, the experience for students and the way the program operates?

📅 September 30, 2026
🕥 10:30 a.m.–12:30 p.m. EST
💻 Free virtual webinar; registration required

In the final webinar of our city-focused School Food Around the World series, four speakers will explore the development of New York City’s program, meal quality, partnerships, procurement and the challenges of implementation:

- Pamela Koch, EdD, RDN, Mary Swartz Rose Associate Professor of Nutrition and Education, Teachers College, Columbia University @columbia
- Nancy Easton - @nancyeaston , Founder and Executive Director, Wellness in the Schools @wellnessintheschools
- Nelson Quiles , Senior Director of Policies, Partnerships, and Communication, New York City Public Schools’ Office of Food and Nutrition Services @nycschools
- Stephen O’Brien, Founder and President, SOBx2 Consulting

We’ll explore how New York City’s program developed, the challenges it faces today, and lessons for Canadian cities expanding school food programs.

Register using the link in one of our stories! by @chsf_canada

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🍎 | The Coalition for Healthy School Food welcomes the @cityofto ’s expansion of its school food program to all remaining public schools.

As Global News journalist Matthew Bingley reports, beginning this school year:

• 33,000 additional students will gain access to school food
• Approximately 325,000 students will be reached across Toronto
• The City will invest $32 million in the program
• Every public school in Toronto will now be included

This expansion represents an important step toward universal access, helping make nutritious food available to students as part of their school day.

Toronto has increased its annual funding for school food by more than 80 per cent over the past three years. Sustained and predictable public investment will be important to maintain this progress and support strong school food programs over the long term.

The Coalition thanks the City of Toronto for its continued commitment to school food.

Thank you to Matt Bingley and the Global News team for reporting on this important development.

We invite you to read the story (link in one of our stories and in our bio).

Photo credit: @globalnews

#SchoolFood #HealthySchoolFood #Toronto #StudentWellBeing by @chsf_canada

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📰 | As #students return to classrooms across #Saskatchewan, #families are packing lunches and schools are preparing for the year ahead. But not every student begins the school day with the same access to #healthy food.

That reality shaped a conversation between ( @panownews ) journalist Nigel Maxwell and Debbie Field, National Coordinator of the Coalition for Healthy School Food.

Debbie recognized the schools, organizations and local partners are working hard to feed student.

She also emphasized that community efforts cannot carry this responsibility alone. Lasting school food programs require sustained provincial investment.

What do the numbers tell us?

• Based on 2023 data, Saskatchewan ranked last among the provinces for government investment in school food—approximately seven cents per meal.
• Saskatchewan’s Child Nutrition Program has a $2.8-million budget for 2026–27.
• A three-year federal–provincial agreement signed in 2025 provides $15.8 million in federal funding through the National School Food Program.

These figures tell a story of tremendous #community commitment but also of the scale of support still needed.

We welcome the new federal funding, celebrate Saskatchewan’s community leaders and continue to call for stronger, sustained provincial investment so every student can access healthy food at school.

We would like to thank Nigel Maxwell for inviting the Coalition to take part in this important conversation and for bringing attention to school food in #Saskatchewan.

We invite you to read paNOW article (the link will be in one our stories)! If not, the link is also in our bio!

#SchoolFood #Saskatchewan #HealthySchoolFood by @chsf_canada

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