Southland DHB offers carrot to education sector

Joint Media Release - SDHB and Newfield Park School

Tuesday 17 July 2007

Southland DHB offers carrot to education sector

Southland District Health Board (SDHB) wants to hear ideas schools and early childhood education services have for encouraging healthy eating and are offering $97,000 to help those ideas become reality.

The funding is available through the Nutrition Fund, a nationwide fund worth $3 million annually over four years. Its aim is to help schools and early childhood education services become healthier eating environments which deliver consistent, positive messages about healthy eating.

The Nutrition Fund provides practical support for schools and early childhood education services to implement recently released guidelines around food and nutrition and could be used to fund the establishment of vegetable gardens, installation of water fountains, introduction of policies or changes to tuck shops.

"We would love to see some applications from clusters of schools and early childhood centres, and the applications should be consistent with the Food and Nutrition for Healthy Confident Kids Guidelines," says SDHB's Healthy Eating Healthy Action Co-ordinator Melanie McKenzie.

Newfield Park School is one school hoping for a slice of the Nutrition Fund, "It's a great boost for schools as it can be hard to get sponsorship for programmes and it will encourage schools to be innovative in how they provide positive examples to the students", says Principal Paul Ellis.

The Nutrition Fund will also assist the implementation of the Food and Beverage Classification System launched today by the Ministry of Health, with an additional $97,000 funding teaching staff to attend training.

"Food and Nutrition Workshops for schools and early childhood education services will explore the Classification System with a public health nutritionist available to explain the system and answer any questions", explains Mrs McKenzie.

SDHB and Newfield Park School both welcomed the arrival of the Classification System.

"It should not be necessary, but it is. I have no problem with it. There does need to be radical change and schools have to walk the talk, it is the only way it is going to happen", says Mr Ellis.

Mrs McKenzie also hopes that the benefits of the Classification System will extend beyond schools and early childhood centres, with food manufacturers also promising changes to their products in order to shift their foods into the 'everyday' category.

"If the food manufacturers reduce the fat, salt, sugar and portion sizes of their products, that can only be good for the health of all New Zealanders," said Mrs McKenzie.

Application forms for the Nutrition Fund are being distributed this week. The first round will close on 19 September; another round of applications will be sought in April 2008.

ENDS

© Scoop Media