Hungry kids find it hard to learn

The evidence came from Elise Cook, Co-Chief Executive Officer, Eat Up Australia, an organisation that is changing the learning outcomes of thousands of Victorian children. 

Ms Cook was speaking to the Legislative Council Legal and Social Issues Committee inquiry into food security in Victoria. She was quoting a school principal highlighting the benefits of Eat Up’s program for the one-in-five Australian children who experience food insecurity. 

Eat Up started providing sandwiches to schools in Shepparton more than ten years ago. It has since grown to serve more than 900 schools across Australia. 

In 2024, the organisation expects to provide more than one million meals. 

‘We hear anecdotally from teachers that there are many kids who prior to having the lunch program at the school were being kept home from school, possibly because parents were embarrassed to send their kids to school without lunch or fearful that it would trigger a department of human services contact from the school,’ she said. 

Once the school lunch program begins, the attendance of many of the same students increases, she told the Committee. 

In its final report the Committee made a range of recommendations to increase access to free meals for Victoria’s school students. 

‘The Victorian Government’s School Breakfast Clubs program is an effective program but it’s under pressure from rising demand,’ said Commitee Chair Trung Luu. 

Currently, the program provides free healthy breakfasts, lunches, snacks and take‑home packs to students in participating government schools. Launched in 2016, the program has served over 40 million meals and aims to address food insecurity and improve educational outcomes for disadvantaged students. 

‘In the Committee’s view, the success of Victoria’s School Breakfast Clubs program in fostering inclusion and improving student outcomes—such as concentration, attendance, and social connectedness—underscores the need for its expansion to all schools across the State,’ the final report said.

The Committee recommended expanding the program so that it is available to all Victorian schools that wish to opt in.  

It also recommended the Victorian Government trial and evaluate a school meal program that provides breakfast through to lunch, using partnerships with local food providers and community organisations.  

Pending the outcome of that trial, the Committee recommended the Victorian Government investigate the delivery of a school meal program to all schools in need. 

In the 2024/25 Budget, the Victorian Government announced it would fund a further $21.1 million to expand the program to all government schools that wish to opt in.  

The expanded program will invite 150 additional schools to join by June 2025, with schools on the waiting list being given priority for 2024. From July 2025, all Victorian government schools will be invited to participate in the program. 

The Committee found that Victorians are experiencing financial stress caused by unemployment, wage stagnation and inadequate income support payments and that this financial stress made it more difficult for Victorians to buy essential goods, such as food. 

‘In Victoria, we have seen an increase in both the number of people accessing food from food relief services and the amount of food these services have distributed across the community,’ said Mr Luu. 

‘There is a direct link between income and food insecurity. That’s why we also believe that the Federal Government should increase income support payments, an approach that has been proven to work in the past.’ 

The Committee found food insecurity has a profound impact on the physical and mental health of Victorians, exacerbating chronic health risks and conditions such as cardiovascular disease and diabetes, as well as stress, anxiety and depression.  

It concluded that Victoria’s approach to food security should transition from relief to resilience. Key to this is the Government establishing a Victorian Food Security Strategy, including appointing a Minister for Food. 

The report made 25 recommendations, including to improve the food literacy of Victorians, particularly First Nations people and culturally and linguistically diverse people.  

The report, including all of its findings and recommendations, can be found on the Committee’s website.