A factory in Dublin could provide a decent job for many people and centralise the service, taking a burden off school admins. We definitely have the money to do this.
Elbon on
That sounds like the schools problem, not the scheme
Gwanbulance on
I hate headlines like this, which presents a position as an irrefutable statement of fact, then you find out that it’s just one person’s opinion in a court case or hearing, and it’s entirely contested.
Some absolute crank could go to that committee and say (without any evidence) that free school meals cause autism, but the headline “School hot meal scheme ‘causes autism’, committee to hear”, would not be a responsible telling of the situation.
P319 on
The process does need fixing, bit the framing of not sustainable isnt a helpful narrative
OkCoconut3270 on
This sounds more like an issue with how educate together schools are managing it?
Perhaps they could have a chat with some other schools and see how they’re doing it?
GarlicGlobal2311 on
This is one of those scheme where it isn’t about if its working or not
Its about what do we fix to make it work. Of all the things we spend money on, giving hungry children hot food is on the top of my list.
Diska_Muse on
The meals are working well in my kiddos school.. food is decent, kids enjoy it, app is user friendly.
As for the complaints :
principals are left to manage the procurement themselves, a process that can take several days over a number of weeks.
That’s bollox. It’s a few of hours work to set it up for schools by the principal. Not exactly a big deal. They only work half the fucking year anyway.
And as for the waste.. our kids bring everything home in their lunch box and we dispose of it.
If there are problems on a local level, they can be fixed. It doesn’t make the entire scheme unsustainable.
isogaymer on
The headline is irresponsibly obscure/deceptive. The individual/body making this ‘claim’ are not arguing at all against the notion of the scheme, but entirely with its organization and administration. RTE are a state funded broadcaster, they have an additional obligation, at least in my view, to be judicious in their reporting. This example, when it comes to the headline at least, clearly fails in that regard.
mcsweaponage on
Not profitable enough you mean
BitterSweetDesire on
The cold food should be prioritised or only offer food thats actually palatable when reheated. Our local school had very little waste when they had cold food menus.
Then came the hot food slop tubs.
Dismal_Flight_686 on
It’s wrong that you can’t opt out
Smaller kids in particular can be picky eaters- and some of them won’t touch it but it’s being paid for
Let people opt out if they want
Ven0mspawn on
This is ridiculous, as a foreigner growing up in the 90s, every school had hot meals provided for every pupil.
Fragrant_Mouse_1742 on
Rte doing everything in their power to make feeding vulnerable hungry children seem a burden.
PoppedCork on
The inconsistencies in the scheme are puzzling.
Dull_Brain2688 on
Not sustainable? How about this. Make it clear that it will be sustained because we’re one of the wealthiest countries in the world and we should be able to feed schoolchildren and then make the people running it make it work efficiently. The notion of not sustaining it should be absolutely abhorrent to everyone.
WidowVonDont on
Hot food is less important than nutritious food, in my humble opinion. There should be a choice between a hot lunch or a sandwich/roll. I cannot fathom why they got rid of the cold option, most of the kids in my sons class went from eating ham salad rolls or chicken sandwiches to plastic pots of plain penne pasta. Zero nutritional value whatsoever. I’m happy to send in a lunch but I really do feel for children who have parents relying on this scheme.
standarsh1965 on
Cut some benefits to former government employees then, the likes of TD’s and ex taoiseachs get far too much anyway
yankdevil on
It would be interesting to hear what’s making it unsustainable. We should work on fixing those.
tightlines89 on
So. Keep it. Our TDs are running the country in an unsustainable way, if we get rid of anything let it be them first.
Altruistic_Papaya430 on
Our sons school had large quality issues with the hot food. They cancelled the contract and in the interim organised a cold lunch service. Which was absolutely fantastic, lots of choices & options and we could add extra items (eg croissants) for about the same price those items cost in a supermarket.
The school havent found a new hot food supplier and the interim contract with the cold lunch supplier only went up to Christmas. So now there’s no lunches whatsoever whilst they have to tender for a new one.
JewelerFront847 on
If this scheme goes down the pan it will be a spectacular own goal.
Our kids have at their school, it’s not a disadvantaged school.
The hot lunches are excellent and make working and raising kids a whole lot easier.
Our school also has on site after school care.
This is how it should be, the kids are in school at 8.30, fed, and collected as late as 6pm, allowing me and my wife to work and pay tax.
If any group pulls this down there’ll be serious backlash.
NostalgicDreaming on
Parents here seem to generally be in favour and enjoying it so far based on the few comments here. Are there any teachers here who can comment on how it’s going in their school? It hasn’t come into my school as of yet. I know it’s external catering staff that come in and deliver the meals to the classes etc but I think the staff in our school are a bit sceptical as to how it will work out, hoping to hear some positive comments from teachers where it has worked well?
5x0uf5o on
I think it’s important to remember that when you hear a parent giving an opinion, their experience is just of one school/supplier, their kids may/may not be picky eaters. We know what people are like with food.
Naturally some suppliers will be better than others. Its up to the parents association to ensure they’re having input about which supplier is chosen. It will take a few years to fully into the grove, but overall people seem pretty happy.
My daughter’s school only just started it recently and they don’t bring the food home so I’m still in the dark. She likes some meals, not others. She can be picky.
Outrageous-Act-4737 on
A breakfast cereal scheme would be much better imo. My kids avail of the hot meal initiative and it’s a waste.
automaticflare on
If you read the article everything she says is true
I think the foot quality is poor and the packaging waste is a joke too. That alone is wasteful and i think it is ok to call that out. I think both need to be improved
If the pricnipal of my kids school is spending half their time managing this instead of doing their job thats going to result in other problems for the school too – again correct
I agree with everything in this article, and they should be reviewed and fixed and the program expanded if needed
AgentSufficient1047 on
It’s shocking that a programme like this is necessary at all in a developed country in 2026. People are unable to feed their own children. When will we correct the root of the problem? Poverty and income disparity
binksee on
The system is a joke, creates an incredible amount of waste and the food has to be cheap and poor quality to be in budget.
Irish schools are not set up to do this properly, and the cost of the scheme for the whole country is not worth it Imo. Much better off targeting at schools that need it
Satur9es on
Look we know many countries in the first world provide free meals for school kids. But let’s be serious, for the Irish government you may as well ask them to park a bus on the moon. It’s way beyond them. Unless a Healy Ray or a Lowry type is getting a cut, obviously.
28 commenti
A factory in Dublin could provide a decent job for many people and centralise the service, taking a burden off school admins. We definitely have the money to do this.
That sounds like the schools problem, not the scheme
I hate headlines like this, which presents a position as an irrefutable statement of fact, then you find out that it’s just one person’s opinion in a court case or hearing, and it’s entirely contested.
Some absolute crank could go to that committee and say (without any evidence) that free school meals cause autism, but the headline “School hot meal scheme ‘causes autism’, committee to hear”, would not be a responsible telling of the situation.
The process does need fixing, bit the framing of not sustainable isnt a helpful narrative
This sounds more like an issue with how educate together schools are managing it?
Perhaps they could have a chat with some other schools and see how they’re doing it?
This is one of those scheme where it isn’t about if its working or not
Its about what do we fix to make it work. Of all the things we spend money on, giving hungry children hot food is on the top of my list.
The meals are working well in my kiddos school.. food is decent, kids enjoy it, app is user friendly.
As for the complaints :
principals are left to manage the procurement themselves, a process that can take several days over a number of weeks.
That’s bollox. It’s a few of hours work to set it up for schools by the principal. Not exactly a big deal. They only work half the fucking year anyway.
And as for the waste.. our kids bring everything home in their lunch box and we dispose of it.
If there are problems on a local level, they can be fixed. It doesn’t make the entire scheme unsustainable.
The headline is irresponsibly obscure/deceptive. The individual/body making this ‘claim’ are not arguing at all against the notion of the scheme, but entirely with its organization and administration. RTE are a state funded broadcaster, they have an additional obligation, at least in my view, to be judicious in their reporting. This example, when it comes to the headline at least, clearly fails in that regard.
Not profitable enough you mean
The cold food should be prioritised or only offer food thats actually palatable when reheated. Our local school had very little waste when they had cold food menus.
Then came the hot food slop tubs.
It’s wrong that you can’t opt out
Smaller kids in particular can be picky eaters- and some of them won’t touch it but it’s being paid for
Let people opt out if they want
This is ridiculous, as a foreigner growing up in the 90s, every school had hot meals provided for every pupil.
Rte doing everything in their power to make feeding vulnerable hungry children seem a burden.
The inconsistencies in the scheme are puzzling.
Not sustainable? How about this. Make it clear that it will be sustained because we’re one of the wealthiest countries in the world and we should be able to feed schoolchildren and then make the people running it make it work efficiently. The notion of not sustaining it should be absolutely abhorrent to everyone.
Hot food is less important than nutritious food, in my humble opinion. There should be a choice between a hot lunch or a sandwich/roll. I cannot fathom why they got rid of the cold option, most of the kids in my sons class went from eating ham salad rolls or chicken sandwiches to plastic pots of plain penne pasta. Zero nutritional value whatsoever. I’m happy to send in a lunch but I really do feel for children who have parents relying on this scheme.
Cut some benefits to former government employees then, the likes of TD’s and ex taoiseachs get far too much anyway
It would be interesting to hear what’s making it unsustainable. We should work on fixing those.
So. Keep it. Our TDs are running the country in an unsustainable way, if we get rid of anything let it be them first.
Our sons school had large quality issues with the hot food. They cancelled the contract and in the interim organised a cold lunch service. Which was absolutely fantastic, lots of choices & options and we could add extra items (eg croissants) for about the same price those items cost in a supermarket.
The school havent found a new hot food supplier and the interim contract with the cold lunch supplier only went up to Christmas. So now there’s no lunches whatsoever whilst they have to tender for a new one.
If this scheme goes down the pan it will be a spectacular own goal.
Our kids have at their school, it’s not a disadvantaged school.
The hot lunches are excellent and make working and raising kids a whole lot easier.
Our school also has on site after school care.
This is how it should be, the kids are in school at 8.30, fed, and collected as late as 6pm, allowing me and my wife to work and pay tax.
If any group pulls this down there’ll be serious backlash.
Parents here seem to generally be in favour and enjoying it so far based on the few comments here. Are there any teachers here who can comment on how it’s going in their school? It hasn’t come into my school as of yet. I know it’s external catering staff that come in and deliver the meals to the classes etc but I think the staff in our school are a bit sceptical as to how it will work out, hoping to hear some positive comments from teachers where it has worked well?
I think it’s important to remember that when you hear a parent giving an opinion, their experience is just of one school/supplier, their kids may/may not be picky eaters. We know what people are like with food.
Naturally some suppliers will be better than others. Its up to the parents association to ensure they’re having input about which supplier is chosen. It will take a few years to fully into the grove, but overall people seem pretty happy.
My daughter’s school only just started it recently and they don’t bring the food home so I’m still in the dark. She likes some meals, not others. She can be picky.
A breakfast cereal scheme would be much better imo. My kids avail of the hot meal initiative and it’s a waste.
If you read the article everything she says is true
I think the foot quality is poor and the packaging waste is a joke too. That alone is wasteful and i think it is ok to call that out. I think both need to be improved
If the pricnipal of my kids school is spending half their time managing this instead of doing their job thats going to result in other problems for the school too – again correct
I agree with everything in this article, and they should be reviewed and fixed and the program expanded if needed
It’s shocking that a programme like this is necessary at all in a developed country in 2026. People are unable to feed their own children. When will we correct the root of the problem? Poverty and income disparity
The system is a joke, creates an incredible amount of waste and the food has to be cheap and poor quality to be in budget.
Irish schools are not set up to do this properly, and the cost of the scheme for the whole country is not worth it Imo. Much better off targeting at schools that need it
Look we know many countries in the first world provide free meals for school kids. But let’s be serious, for the Irish government you may as well ask them to park a bus on the moon. It’s way beyond them. Unless a Healy Ray or a Lowry type is getting a cut, obviously.