Six Jamaican schools are making strides in sustainable school feeding
Six pilot schools in Manchester, Jamaica highlighted their successes and commitment towards meeting the six components of sustainable School Feeding Programmes (SFPs) during an FAO Stakeholder’s School Feeding Programme workshop in December 2017. Christiana High, Craighead Primary, Holmwood High, Mile Gully Primary, Mile Gully High and Pike Primary presented notable advances in infrastructure improvement, intersectoral coordination, community involvement, food and nutrition education, and public procurement within their schools, aimed at promoting long-term healthy eating habits within the school community. Some of the successes included the establishment of a Nutrition week, Fruit and Water Days, Parents' Nutrition Education Day, the withdrawal of sodas from tuck shops and canteens, healthy cooking training sessions for canteen personnel, Health and Hygiene weeks, a Breakfast Programme, Teacher’s Aerobics Day and tools and equipment for school farms and gardens.
Students also participated in a nutrition education poster and song competition and were awarded prizes during the workshop. Recommendations for phase two of the programme were also made during the workshop. Photo highlights from the workshop can be seen on the FAO Flickr for Latin America and the Caribbean.
Jamaica's sustainable School Feeding Programme is in line with national and regional food and nutrition plans and is designed to strengthen insectoral coordination at national and community levels. Phase two of the project focusing on nutrition education, community involvement, and public purchasing systems is scheduled to be underway in 2018.
FAO continues in its support to the SFP pilots which are testing a multi-dimensional approach to school feeding to enable the sustainable provision of healthy and nutritious meals for students.