Under the hot school meals programme, children can choose from a variety of warm dishes such as beef stroganoff, tuna bake, pasta bolognese, and a carved pumpkin and lentil dahl served with rice. The programme, which started in 2003, added hot meal options in 2019, beginning with an initial deployment in 37 schools. The 2025 Budget announcement indicates an expansion of this programme, providing hot meals to all primary schools, increasing from the current eligible 2,200 to over 3,000 from next year.
The scheme’s purpose is to ensure children receive regular, wholesome food to help them maximise their educational opportunities. There are several reasons for the implementation of the free meals scheme, including addressing child poverty, hunger, and the important health and nutritional benefits.
A study commissioned by the Health Service Executive (HSE) earlier this year found that one in five primary schoolchildren are either overweight or obese. This prevalence is particularly high among children from disadvantaged backgrounds.
The broad menu caters to various tastes. Some providers enable parents to make meal orders for the students to help minimise waste. FreshToday, one of the hot school meal providers, provides diverse options such as roast beef with mash potato, pepperoni and mozzarella ciabatta, chilli con carne with rice, and Mexican three bean stew, among others. Lunches4School offers a different menu on Fridays, including more indulgent options like chicken goujon bread rolls, cocktail sausages with potato cubes, or shredded chicken with fried rice and curry sauce.
Tracie Tobin, the principal of St Michael’s School in Limerick, expressed satisfaction with being among the first recipients of the free hot meals, calling the programme’s forthcoming expansion to all schools ‘wonderful’.
The lunches for the school children get dispatched promptly by 7am, promptly placed in the oven for serving hot at lunchtime, reported Ms. Tobin. Initially, the programme faced criticism over concerns of food and plastic waste. Ms. Tobin, however, assured that the school meals come in containers that are compostable, including the cutlery. Any excess food is sent back home with the students in a container.
Parents are granted access to an app through which they can specify their children’s meals at Ms. Tobin’s school. Immediate restrictions are enforced on meals containing potential allergens once the parents disclose any allergies their child might have. This precautionary measure provides reassurance for parents, shielding their children from potential illnesses at school.
The students are given a selection of 15 meal options daily, which undergo periodic review. Even though the menu changes every Friday, it still maintains its nutritional value. For instance, options might include quality cuts of chicken like chicken goujons or the popular option, the chicken curry.
The government has set and released dietary guidelines for the programme, limiting the provision of processed meat or chicken products, fried foods, or food coated in breadcrumbs or contained in a pastry to once a week, if at all. The necessity to serve fish at least once a week was also highlighted. Guidelines also touched on cooking techniques, advising against adding salt to water during the preparation of pasta, rice, or other grain-based meals, as well as avoiding adding fats or deep frying when cooking potatoes.