School Food Programs in the Pacific Islands: Exploring opportunities and challenges for creating healthier school food environments

Sarah Burkhart; Ann Hayman; Fiasili Lam; Breanna Jones; Bridget Horsey; Dana Craven; Steven Underhill

doi:10.1017/S1368980022001951

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School Food Programs in the Pacific Islands: Exploring opportunities and challenges for creating healthier school food environments

Journal article

Open access

Peer reviewed

School Food Programs in the Pacific Islands: Exploring opportunities and challenges for creating healthier school food environments

Sarah Burkhart, Ann Hayman, Fiasili Lam, Breanna Jones, Bridget Horsey, Dana Craven and Steven Underhill

Public Health Nutrition, Vol.26(2), pp.455-466

2023

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S1368980022001951

PMCID: PMC13076070

PMID: 36404716

Appears in UniSC Diversity and Inclusion Research Collection

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Abstract

educatino

school food

sustainability

nutrition

children

Oceania

health

UniSC Diversity Area - Life Stages

Objective: The school setting can provide an environment that supports healthy behaviours, including the provision of food. School food activities, i.e. school feeding, are commonplace globally, but not well understood in the Pacific Islands region. The aim of this research is to explore learnings associated within existing school food programs (SFP), and adoption resistors in those Pacific Island Countries and Territories (PICT) without SFP, with the intent of improving current and future SFP interventions. Design: This observational cross-sectional study utilised four facilitated workshop sessions to explore SFP within an existing framework. Setting: Pacific Islands region Participants: Fourteen participants representing the education and health sectors from 11 PICT, and two participants representing regional organisations. Results: Most countries reported some form of related policy, but key critical constraints to the use of SFP included: local food environments; strategic alignment to organisational priorities; advocacy and organisational leadership; community and cultural connections and collaboration. There are opportunities for integration of SFP into existing frameworks (i.e. Health Promoting Schools), increased collaboration, greater professional development and awareness activities, improved monitoring and evaluation, improved awareness of SFP and promotion of healthy eating for the wider school community. Conclusions: Given the current health, social and economic challenges faced by countries and territories in the Pacific Islands region, SFP should be considered as an opportunity for food provision and associated nutrition education for students and their wider community. Further research is needed to understand the critical constraints of SFP in this region, and how to support stakeholders to advocate for, develop and sustain SFP that are contextually and culturally appropriate.

Details

Title: School Food Programs in the Pacific Islands: Exploring opportunities and challenges for creating healthier school food environments
Authors: Sarah Burkhart (Corresponding Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australian Centre for Pacific Islands Research
Ann Hayman (Author) - Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Fiasili Lam (Author) - Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Breanna Jones (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Legacy
Bridget Horsey (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Legacy
Dana Craven (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australian Centre for Pacific Islands Research
Steven Underhill (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australian Centre for Pacific Islands Research
Publication details: Public Health Nutrition, Vol.26(2), pp.455-466
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Date published: 2023
DOI: 10.1017/S1368980022001951
ISSN: 1475-2727
PMID: 36404716; PMC13076070
Copyright note: © The Authors 2022. This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution and reproduction, provided the original article is properly cited.
Organisation Unit: Australian Centre for Pacific Islands Research; High Performance Sport - Legacy; University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland; School of Health - Nutrition & Dietetics; School of Nursing, Midwifery and Paramedicine - Legacy; School of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Legacy; Sustainability Research Cluster
Language: English
Record Identifier: 99692488102621
Output Type: Journal article

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Collaboration types: International collaboration
Web Of Science research areas: Nutrition & Dietetics; Public, Environmental & Occupational Health

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