Tasmania’s School Lunch Program will be doubled in size over the next three years, giving even more students access to hearty and healthy meals.
The program will be expanded from 30 to 60 schools by 2026, with $14.6 million committed to the initiative.
Education Minister Jo Palmer said the investment will ensure more students benefit from nutritious cooked school lunches.
“Schools involved in the pilot program reported students were calmer and that there was an increase in attendance, particularly among those who were often absent from school,” Palmer said.
Non-profit partners School Food Matters and Loaves & Fishes Tasmania will work with the state government to add 15 schools to the program in 2025 and another 15 in 2026.
Loaves and Fishes CEO Andrew Hillier said his organisation was happy to help.
“It’s such a great opportunity to make sure that we showcase the importance and value of healthy, nutritious food and particularly our great Tasmanian produce,” Hillier said.
“We see this as a really positive way of addressing some of the food insecurity issues that we face in Tasmania and making sure that our young people grow up with the important value of what it is to eat a healthy, nutritious meal.”
Palmer said the next schools to benefit from free lunches will be determined following an expression of interest process in Term 3.
All schools currently enrolled in the program will have the opportunity to continue through the 2025-2026 period.
