School Food Program Resources

Canada has finally joined the other G7 Nations and developed a National School Food Program.

• April 2024 - Government of Canada Commits $1 Billion in School Food Funding
• June 2024 - Release of Canada's National School Food Policy

Part One: School Food Programs in Canada - 15 Promising Cases - find out more about inspiring school food programs that are operating around the country.  (version en français)

Part Two: Needs Assessment & Community Engagement Guide - provides a framework for schools and schools divisions/districts to engage in community consultation, assess their needs and capacity, and strategically plan as they start or grow a school food program. 

• School Environmental Scan*
• School Nutrition Environment Assessment Tool - from the Government of Saskatchewan's Nourishing Minds program resources          French Language Version
• School Kitchen Inventory List
• School Kitchen Inventory List - fillable Excel version
• School Food Envisioning Meeting Sample Powerpoint w/ Discussion Questions
• Survey & Questionnaire Sample Questions
  • SFDP Student, Community & Staff Sample Survey Questions*
  • Knowledges, Attitudes and Practices Survey*
  • SFP Survey for School Staff*
  • No Kid Hungry - Student Feedback Toolkit for High Schools 

*Student and Staff Surveys and the School Environmental Scan were adapted from the Individual Eating Assessment Tool (I-EAT) developed by Black et al. (2013) (2015) (2015) (2016) and the School Food Environments Assessment Tool (SFEAT) Black et al. (2015)

Part Three: Food Literacy Guide - provides best practice recommendations for Canadian educators interested in engaging students in food-based learning. Also includes links to over 50 food literacy teaching resources for grades K-12. 

• Food Literacy on Social Media - a list of social media accounts you can follow who offer best-practice food literacy and nutrition information and advice. Always be cautious about resources and information you find on social media. 

Part Four: Program Operations and Costing Guide - COMING SOON

• Cost Analysis and Budgeting Tools
• SFP Cultural Support and Recommendations
• Food Procurement
• School Food Infrastructure Recommendations

Part Four: Monitoring, Evaluation and Assessment Guide - COMING SOON

For more information about the School Food How-To Guide email project lead Dr. Rachel Engler-Stringer rachel.engler-stringer@usask.ca 

• Monthly menu plans from Maskwacis Education Commission's universal school meal program
• A 14-day menu plan incorporating recipes from Chef Jenni Lessard
• Chef Jenni's modern, indigenous-inspired recipes - Bison Calzones, Three Sisters Cookies, Whole Wheat Bannock, Fruit Leather
• A one month menu plan from Flourish! BC's program 

• Wild plant foraging information available from Northern Bushcraft
• Alberta Health Guidelines for serving wild game in community programs.
• In Alberta, wild game shared in schools must be carefully tracked - the hunter, food storage facility, and school must maintain food safety standards and complete a tracking form such as this one from Kee Tas Kee Now Tribal Council Education Authority. 

• Teaching Canada's Food Guide nutrition resources for teachers
• School Food Funding Sources (this resource is designed for SK schools, but many of the grants/donors listed are open to applicants from across Canada)
• Wondering how food is integrated into your school? Use this checklist adapted by the School Food Development Project from the School Food Environment Assessment Tool developed by Black et al. 
• Food Mapping Activity - find out where food resources are in your community and develop food literacy among your participants. Adapted from a Food Matters Manitoba resource. 
• Teach Nutrition Saskatchewan - free to use nutrition and healthy eating habits resources, specifically designed for classrooms in Saskatchewan, developed by the Dairy Farmers of Canada's Registered Dieticians. Includes lesson plans, worksheets, digital activities, etc. for ECE and K-12. 
• Health Schools BC - Teach Food First Toolkit
• Reading Nutrition Labels resource - from ISC Ontario
• The Alberta Food Security Working Group and Elder's Advisory Group made recommendations for increasing access to traditional foods in Indigenous community programs and facilities in their 2017 Food Sovereignty Declaration. 
• Reconciliation Saskatoon's BeAConnectR Indigenous Food Resources
• Ontario Dieticians in Public Health created this Nurturing Healthy Eaters handout which provides information on encouraging students to make healthy food choices.
• Training and retention of staff is a key component of sustainable school food programs. Maskwacis Education Commission has gratiously shared their Employee Handbook for Universal School Food Strategy Staff to act as a model for other schools/division and encourage the development of robust, sustainable policies and procedures.
• At Maskwacis Education high schools, students assist with school meal preparation and service and can earn Food Ventures 10, 20, 30 credits. Assessment Rubric 
• Resources for Parents - School Nutrition Bites – food, school meal, and nutrition-related information
• Cost of nutritious meals and snacks for children in SK report to help with planning for food costs and applying for funding
• Recommendations for incorporating First Nation and Métis Traditional Practices and Foods and Cultural Practices and Foods into schools (from the Government of Saskatchewan's Nourishing Minds program)

Looking for nutritional guidance for Saskatchewan schools? Check out the Govt of SK's Nourishing Minds document or CHEP Good Food's Nutrition Positive Manual 

School Cooks Gathering

On Feb 1-2, 2024, the School Food Development Project and MLTC Education hosted a School Cooks Gathering at the Meadow Lake Civic Centre for all MLFN school cooks. The gathering offered opportunties for cooks to get to know one another and engage in some professional development. 

• School Cook Training Manual by Jordan Sokmenoglu - includes menu planning guide
• Knife Skills & Robotcoupe Sessions available on our YouTube Channel
• SK Polytechnic's Derek Cotton and Jordan Sokmenoglu shared tips on scaling up and developing your existing school food programming using the School Cooks Training Manual (above). See their presentation slides here.
• SFDP Lead Researcher Dr. Rachel Engler-Stringer gave a presentation on the current state of school food in Canada, shared details of the SFDP so far and talked community food soveriegnty. See her presentation slides here.
• Principal Glenda Crookedneck was unable to attend the gathering, but prepared a wonderful presentation exploring the school food program at Ministikwan Lake Cree Nation School. Check it out here or as a short video on our YouTube channel. 

Come to the Table: Exploring School Food Together

On October 27-28, 2022, the School Food Development Project hosted the Come to the Table gathering, bringing together our project partners to learn, share and be inspired by stories of successful school food programs. 

• Guest Speaker Presentations - Tanya Senk (with Joanna Simon), Scott Hall, Courtney Wheelton, Derek Cotton, Jenni Lessard, Rachel Engler-Stringer
• The Holistic Framework and Planning resource used at Come to the Table was shared with the SFDP by Meadow Lake Tribal Council. Copyright Ceclia Deschambault 2021. 
• Come to the Table Final Report - includes discussion summaries, event menu, presentation summaries and other suggested resources

Practicing Wellness in Community Re-Search - as part of the School Food Development Project, Indigenous Advisor Dene Cheecham-Uhrich from Clearwater River Dene Nation created this guide for researchers engaged in Indigenous-focused research projects or collaborating with Indigenous communties. The report was developed as an extension of our commitment to the First Nations' Principles of OCAP

Some great books:

• School Food, Equity and Social Justice: Critical Reflections and Perspectives by Dorte Ruge, Irene Torres, Darren Powell
• The School Food Revolution: Public Food and the Challenge of Sustainable Development by Kevin Morgan & Roberta Sonnino
• Food Sovereignty in Canada: Creating Just and Sustainable Food Systems edited by Annette Aurélie Desmarais, Nettie Wiebe and Hannah Wittman  (read an excerpt here) 

Relevant blogs, reports, news and journal articles: 

• Social Determinants of Health Inequities in Indigenous Canadians Through a Life Course Approach to Colonialism and the Residential School System by Paul J. Kim
• Oh, Canada! Our Kids Deserve Better - UNICEF report
• Are school meals a viable and sustainable tool to improve the healthiness and sustainability of children´s diet and food consumption? A cross-national comparative perspective by M. Oostindjer et al. 
• The Need for Culturally-Informed Approaches to Food Security by Tom Ndekezi
• Beyond Health and Nutrition: Reframing School Food Programs Through Integrated Food Pedegogies by Barbara Parker & Mario Koeppel
• Arrell Food Institute's School Food and Nutrition Report
• Why Food Sovereignty Matters - US Department of the Interior (an American resource, but still relevant to a Canadian context in many ways) 

 SFDP Newsletters & Updates (Mar 2022 - June 2023)