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Summarised by Centrist
The school lunches programme is tracking $130 million in annual savings, complaints are down 88%, and more than 37 million meals are served each year.
This week’s political fight has focused instead on a name change.
Cabinet papers obtained by media show ministers agreed in October to update the programme’s name from “Ka Ora, Ka Ako | Healthy School Lunches” to simply “Healthy School Lunches.” Associate Education Minister David Seymour said the change was about clarity: “People need to know what things are. That’s why we’re using an English name that everyone understands.”
The programme now feeds more than 240,000 students in over 1000 schools. After early “headwinds”, officials say the shift to a more cost-effective model is delivering “considerable improvements.”
Positive feedback doubled from 12.7% to 25.3% between Terms 1 and 2, while complaints fell by 88%. Forecasts show the scheme remains on track to deliver $130 million in annual savings, with Seymour claiming reforms have already been projected to save taxpayers “almost $300m”.
A report back to Cabinet ministers argued the original objectives were “no longer fit for purpose” and backed increased competition among providers to improve price negotiations and reduce risk.
Opposition parties have focused on the removal of the te reo Māori title. Green MP Teanau Tuiono labelled the move “racist” and “anti-Māori,” while Labour’s Willow-Jean Prime called it “petty” and described the wider scheme as a “flop” plagued by “botch-up after botch-up.”
Seymour dismissed the criticism, saying if opponents were “getting excited about minor administrative issues like this, they’ll be in opposition for a very long time.”
