Serving up local school lunches for less

It’s 9am on a Thursday and Ngāti Rārua is preparing 569 school lunches at the Nelson Rugby Club rooms for the Ka Ora Ka Ako healthy school lunch programme.

On the menu is a kūmara and corn fritter with cucumber slices and pretzels, which will go to students at Victory Primary School, Auckland Point School, Maitai School, and Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Tuia Te Matangi.

Thirty cucumbers are being sliced, 220 eggs have been whisked, and 40 students with dietary requirements are being catered to.

Ngāti Rārua is the iwi partner for the programme locally and is now in its fourth year providing the meals.

Under the recent changes to the Government-funded programme they have seen a 30 per cent decrease in funding but are still managing to provide nutritious and tasty lunches for just $4 per child.

To save money, Kaitunu Kai Matua (executive chef) Geoffrey Welham, aka ‘Geoff the chef’, says that they have transitioned to a self-service model to save on packaging. Last week they were down a delivery vehicle so some of the lunches pictured in this article were packaged.

“We were spending 40 cents a day per child on packaging… but the benefits with the self-service model are that children get to break bread with each other and feed their classmates. It’s not just about the eating,” he says.

Geoffrey says the other way they are saving money is by slightly decreasing protein content.

“There’s an extra vegetarian meal every second week, with our menu rotating every 15 days.”

Each lunch is required to have a 40 per cent vegetable content, which sees him getting creative with recipes - including using courgettes and corn in pizza bases, as well as vegetables in muffins sweetened with carrots and dates.

“Some of the favourite dishes among students are mac and cheese, butter chicken, bangers and mash, and noodle dishes.”

Other menu items include a chicken wrap, nachos, and make your own burger.
There is also a big focus on local food sourcing with fruit and vegetables coming from Connings and bread from Coupland’s.

“Even though there has been a decrease in funding, it’s still achievable.”

Geoffrey, who has been a chef for 30 years, says he likes to see how far he can push the boundaries when it comes to introducing new flavours.

“Exposing them to new flavours has a long-term effect on their relationship with food, because it’s not just about filling them up, there’s lots of other parts of their relationship with food that we’re trying to change.”

Auckland Point School principal Sonya Hockey says the lunches from Ngāti Rārua are “a gift”.

“The quality is beautiful, it’s 100 per cent food with no additives. The food miles are really low because it’s local… it’s cooked just across the river.”

Sonya says any leftovers are given to whānau to take home.

“There’s very little waste, and parents are really appreciative of the extra food. This is a gift, and we’re appreciating it - and we’re teaching our children to appreciate it as well.”

According to seven-year-old Auckland Point School pupil Phoenix McMaster, the lunches “taste good”.

“It’s something different every day. This lunch is tasty.”

Aurora Creed, 9, says her favourite part of the lunch on Thursday was the fritter.

“I wouldn’t want to change anything with the lunches.”

Willow Woodward, 6, said her favourite part was “the pretzels”.

Dan George, principal of Victory Primary School, says the benefits of the programme are multifaceted.

“First and foremost, we are strengthening our relationship with Te Rūnanga o Ngāti Rārua, who is also the iwi kaitiaki of our kura. Iwi are well-accustomed to catering for large groups and manaakitanga is their specialty… they’ve literally been doing it on the marae for hundreds of years.”

Dan says that Geoffrey and the team are at school regularly to interact with staff and students and get real-time feedback.

“‘Geoff the Chef’ is a well-known person in our kura and it’s great when he comes to visit.

“Also, because they are local, they are flexible and are usually able to provide alternative kai for trips or camps if we need it. At our last camp they made us several lasagnes to take away for dinner in place of the lunches for those classes that week.”

Dan says there are the obvious health benefits, learning benefits, and financial benefits, but one other thing that isn’t always considered is the culture of eating together.

“We sit together, try new food together, share karakia together, talk to each other, and take turns dishing up food and cleaning up. It’s real-life learning that makes a big difference for our tamariki.

“Everyone receives the same nutritious lunch each day and we know that all children in our school will have access to healthy food to give them the energy they need to be kids… to play, to learn, and to feel good about themselves.”