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In 2009, a school feeding program based on the Brazilian national school feeding program was launched in Latin America and the Caribbean. Through cross-sectoral policies and legal mechanisms, the program provides food and nutrition education activities and encourages local farming families to procure for the program. The project started as a five-country partnership and has now expanded to 14 countries. A 2013 study in eight participating countries showed that these programs not only increased school attendance and learning, but also increased incomes for community farmers.
Five years ago, a program was launched in Latin America and the Caribbean to provide nutritious food to students, promote food and nutrition education, and stimulate local economies. The “Strengthening School Feeding Programs in Latin America and the Caribbean 2025 without Hunger Initiative” began as a collaboration among five countries and has now grown to 14 countries.
Providing food, education and support to the community
The project builds on the Brazilian National School Feeding Program established 50 years ago and aims to improve the existing school feeding program through various activities at the regional and national levels. The project focuses on strengthening and coordinating school feeding policies with the support and participation of ministers, vice-ministers, secretaries, civil society, community school advisors and parliamentarians. In addition, the project promotes development through training of personnel involved in school feeding policies, such as managers, administrators, technicians, nutritionists, teachers and local education coordinators.
In addition to providing the food itself, the program promotes education on food sustainability and places a high priority on purchasing food directly from local farming families for use in schools. This is a key element of the program as it helps stimulate the local economy. The program also strives to break the cycle of hunger for farming families by allowing them to sell their products on favorable terms and generate income. In a context of financial, political and environmental instability, these programs have improved food and nutrition security.
“This is a win-win-win: it protects the quality of diets for pupils in public schools, promotes the consumption of fresh and healthy food, and opens up new markets and the possibility of increased income for family farmers, all while boosting local development,” said FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva.
See the results
In 2013, FAO conducted a study in eight participating countries, covering 18 million students of different ages and education levels.
The results are encouraging. They show that these programs reduce the risk of children dropping out of school, improve learning outcomes, address poor learning outcomes caused by malnutrition and hunger, and prevent worsening malnutrition. In addition, all eight countries surveyed expressed interest in purchasing food from family farmers for these programs as a way to boost local development.
The way forward
While interest in the program has grown in line with its success, local government commitment is essential for its continued effectiveness. Legal and regulatory frameworks are needed to facilitate the integration of smallholders into government supply networks.
“The study shows that addressing the challenges of school feeding programmes requires the involvement of all parties, including governments, parliamentarians, international organizations, the private sector, the education community and civil society,” said Najila Veloso, FAO’s coordinator for the region.
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