BURST
Canada is a late arrival to the concept of feeding impoverished children who arrive at school hungry.
It was just last year that the federal government launched its National School Food Program promising to spend $1 billion over five years.
University of B.C. researcher Jennifer Black said it’s too early to determine if this and B.C.’s Feeding Futures program were meeting the needs of children, families and schools.
“Many of the programs are just getting off the ground. It’s important not to judge the outcomes until we have a clearer sense of what they will like at full-scale,” said Black, an associate professor in the food, nutrition and health program at UBC’s faculty of land and food systems.
She said a number of researchers across Canada are seeking grants to evaluate the federal and provincial food programs.
“We have a lot of evidence about the need and some promising examples of what is possible, but a long way to go before we know the answers,” she said.
The B.C. government two years ago introduced its Feeding Futures program committing to spend $214 million over three years.
Until the federal program began in 2024, Canada was alone among the 36-member Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development in not having a national program to feed impoverished children at school.
Other members of this club of developed countries had programs that were decades old.
Black said there were many “very clear needs and important rationales for why Canada would benefit from well-developed, well supported school food programs.”
“We have plenty of evidence about the challenges that children face when they come to school without access to adequate food — including increased mental-health struggles and learning challenges, and we know the consequences for teachers and schools when children don’t have the fuel they need to thrive at school,” she explained.
A 2024 study by researchers from the University of Ottawa and the University of York found one-in-five Canadian children live in poverty.
The poverty rate here is slightly higher than in the U.S. A study by the American Psychological Association found one-in-six U.S. children live in poverty.
Given that, a comparison can be made between Canada’s $1 billion National School Food program and federal programs that feed impoverished children in the U.S.
The U.S. has three national programs to feed children: the National School Lunch program that began in 1946, a school breakfast program and another that feeds children during the summer when school is out.
Together, they cost US$22 billion a year.
Canada’s population is a tenth the size of America’s so to provide a food program here to match what is offered there should cost $2.2 billion a year — or 11 times what the Canadian government has allocated in its five-year plan, which amounts to spending $200 million a year.
B.C. is receiving $13.1 million a year of the $200 million as its share.
Meanwhile, the provincial government’s Feeding Futures has set aside $71.3 million a year for the next three years.
But not all of that will be available to buy food as there are administrative costs associated with setting up the new programs, such as staffing and equipment.
Even in the U.S., which has had decades of experience refining its program, only 46 per cent of the budget is available for food.
It’s likely that the administration costs of Canada’s programs won’t be known until they have been completely rolled out.
A number of U.S. states are considering offering free meals to all students similar to what New York does, which this year gave 2.7 million students access to meals regardless of family income.
“No kid should go hungry in the classroom and no parent should have to stretch their budget to pack a lunch,” said New York Gov. Kathy Hochul. “New York is taking that burden off our families.”
The Vancouver Sun Children’s Fund, which administers the Adopt-A-School campaign, has sent $15.1 million to schools to feed hungry children since the program began in 2011. Already dozens of schools have made applications for help from this year’s AAS campaign with the majority looking for funds to feed students at school, and provide food and clothing and other necessities.
All donations made to AAS will be received by schools. No administrative costs are deducted from donations. For more information or to donate please visit us online at vansunkidsfund.ca.