Breakfast, Snack & Lunch
Universal Access to Food at School
Universal School Food Programs
What is the Purpose of Universal School Food Programs?
Learn how to ensure school food programs are equitable and administered in ways that reduce stigma, maintain dignity and provide autonomy. This includes applying universal approaches to fee-based lunch programs.
Division of Responsibility in Feeding
Staff and volunteers are responsible for:
What food is offered
When it is offered
Where it is offered
Students are responsible for:
Deciding whether or not they will eat
How much they will eat
School food programs are intended to nourish all students, not just address hunger - It is important to provide healthy foods. Learn more about the Division of Responsibility in Feeding from the Ellyn Satter Institute.
Procurement Support: Food Lists
Use these resources to support purchasing for your school food programs. Food lists align with the School Food and Nutrition Policy and Canada's Food Guide.
On the Armstrong (OHA) online ordering portal, searching for foods by order number is much more efficient than searching by name. Use this guide to quickly find order numbers for appropriate foods - just copy and paste the order number into the OHA search function!
This resource is intended to support purchasing decisions when procuring food externally from OHA. The list includes nutritionally appropriate foods that can be purchased from local grocery retailers. The products in the three lists below are also included in this resource.
Menu Planning & Sample Menus
Use these resources to plan and create menus for your school food programs.
This resource provides three sample breakfast menus. All meet nutritional standards, but the nutritional quality does vary between the three, as does the prep work required and cost.
This resource was developed in 2020 to support schools to operate healthy, safe school food programs during Covid-19. While many Public Health restrictions are no longer applicable, the breakfast, lunch and snack menu options in this resource are still appropriate.
This practical resource explains which foods should be offered for breakfast and snack programs and which foods should be avoided. It includes lists of foods to serve, menu ideas, and how to swap out less healthy options for healthier options.
Consistent or streamlined menus, such as a cycle menu or simplified menu, could assist in improving efficiencies in school food programs.
Menus help communicate what you plan to serve. It is important that menus are accessible, accurate, detailed and easy to read.
Learn how to choose appropriate side dishes.
Don't be intimidated by tofu! Check out this resource to learn how to prepare.
Recipes
Check out these School Food and Nutrition Policy approved recipes for breakfast, lunch and snack!
(Photo: Canada's Food Guide)