The healthiness of New Zealand school food environments: a national survey

Abstract

Objective: To evaluate the healthiness of New Zealand school food environments. Methods:In 2016, primary and secondary schools were invited to complete a cross-sectional questionnaire. School nutrition policies were analysed using an adapted Wellness School Assessment Tool. Canteen menus were analysed using the National Food and Beverage Classification System, and a sample of menus (n=54) were validated using fieldworker observations. Results:In total, 819 schools (response rate 33%) participated. Forty per cent had a nutrition policy, and those analysed (n=145) lacked comprehensiveness and contained weak statements. Seventy-one per cent sold food and beverages during the school day. The school food service offered mainly unhealthy items. Many schools (81%) used food and beverages for fundraising with 90% of them using 'less healthy' items. Most had vegetable gardens (80%), included nutrition education in the curriculum (90%), were not sponsored by food and beverage companies (94%) and did not have commercial advertising on school grounds (97%). Conclusion:New Zealand school nutrition policies are weak, and canteen and fundraising items are largely unhealthy, which undermine other positive efforts. Implications for public health:This study provides evidence of unhealthy school food environments and supports the need for stronger national-level policy.

Culture of Healthy Eating and Food Environments, Policies, and Practices in Regional New Zealand Schools

“…Similar to the 2016 results [ 23 ], secondary schools were more likely to report facing barriers than primary schools, with resistance from students and parents/whānau among the top three barriers commonly faced. Low- and mid-advantage schools in Hawke’s Bay were also likely to report their efforts being hampered by surrounding unhealthy food outlets, which is analogous to NZ and international research [ 34 , 35 , 36 ].…”

“…Schools in Hawke’s Bay were more likely to report having a food and nutrition policy in comparison with national data from the School-FERST survey administered in 2016 [ 23 ]. Unlike 2016, more high-advantage Hawke’s Bay schools reported having a policy compared with low-advantage schools.…”

“…Unlike 2016, more high-advantage Hawke’s Bay schools reported having a policy compared with low-advantage schools. This might be due to the utilisation of the school policy subscription service SchoolDocs [ 32 ], which was very popular in this study, as it also was in 2016 [ 23 ]. Of the 26 policies submitted, 23 used the SchoolDocs template with little to no customisation.…”

“…Such generic policies will have little effectiveness in improving the healthiness of food environments given the uniqueness between schools. School food policies in Hawke’s Bay also had higher comprehensiveness scores than those in the national study [ 23 ] but continued to lack strength because of their brief and suggestive nature, that is, they did not use strong or specific wording or include clearly stated goals and guidance. School food and nutrition policies are a crucial component of the school food environment because of their ability to impact the use of food broadly within the school [ 11 ].…”

“…WellSAT was developed by the Rudd Centre for Food Policy and Obesity to evaluate the comprehensiveness and strength of school food and nutrition policies. As this 96-item tool was developed specifically for US schools, it was modified to suit the NZ context (WellSAT-NZ), the first iteration being a 40-item tool that was piloted and then used in a large-scale study in 2016 [ 23 ]. On the basis of the results from these initial surveys and published literature, the tool was shortened and modified further into the 10-item tool Policy-Food and Nutrition in Schools (Policy-FANS; see Supplementary File S2 ) that was used in this study.…”