School Lunch Ordering Open

Starting today, September 20, families of students in 28 Nova Scotia schools can order their choice of delicious, nutritious school lunches.

They can now order lunches based on their lunch program start dates: September 20-25 for October 1; October 4-9 for October 15 or October 18-23 for October 28. All start dates are now listed on the website: https://nslunch.ca/

“The students and families I’ve spoken to are so excited about our Nova Scotia School Lunch Program,” said Becky Druhan, Minister of Education and Early Childhood Development. “The program is easy, affordable and nutritious and will support excellence in learning and well-being for Nova Scotia students. I encourage everyone to go to NSLunch.ca, browse the menu and check ordering and lunch start dates.”

The program’s menu is made up of 40 different lunches that align with the Nova Scotia School Food and Nutrition Policy and celebrate the diversity of Nova Scotian students.

Each school day there is a choice between two options with at least one vegetarian option. Students’ first lunch on Tuesday, October 1, will be soft-shell beef or black bean tacos. Other meals served that week include sweet and sour meatballs or tofu, chicken or falafel wraps, and mini veggie or cheese pizzas.

Phase 1 of the program includes schools that have elementary school grades, meaning more than 75,000 students and potentially more than 13 million lunches could be served this school year. It is a pay-what-you-can program – families confidentially choose to pay the full $6.50 cost of each lunch, part of the cost or nothing, through the online ordering system.

Preparations to launch the program have included significant staffing, purchasing of equipment, expanding or starting new vendor relationships and building the online ordering and payment system.

Quick Facts:

• from September 20 to 25, ordering will be open for 28 of the 255 schools; 49 more schools will start ordering October 4, with ordering opening for the final 178 schools on October 18
• all schools will rotate through the same four-week menu but staggered to avoid strain on the supply chain; for example, on October 28, half of the schools will serve creamy pasta with chicken and vegetables or creamy pasta with vegetables, and half will serve macaroni and cheese with beef and vegetables or macaroni and cheese with vegetables
• the Province announced the new school lunch program as part of Budget 2024-25 with an $18.8-million investment for the 2024-25 school year

Additional Resources:

Budget 2024-25: https://novascotia.ca/budget/

News release – Province Gears Up to Launch School Lunch Program this October: https://news.novascotia.ca/en/2024/08/23/province-gears-launch-school-lunch-program-october