Originally published at https://www.hurunui.govt.nz
Rural students in Hurunui are enjoying healthy school lunches thanks to a community partnership.
Hurunui Council’s Together Hurunui Facilitator Natalie Paterson said Amuri and Cheviot area schools have received portable freezers filled with nutritious food through the MainPower Community Pantry initiative, a partnership between Together Hurunui and MainPower.
“The freezers are stocked with healthy meals like soups and rolls, and bread, ham and cheese for toasties, which students can easily make into a nutritious meal that will sustain them through their day,” said Paterson.
The MainPower Community Pantry was developed out of a pilot project carried out in 2022 by Together Hurunui to look at families’ access to healthy food to put into school lunchboxes.
“We asked students for their feedback to give us ideas around how we could support whanau and ensure our students are able to focus and perform well at school,” Paterson said.
In response to the feedback, Together Hurunui successfully sought funding through the MainPower Community Fund to run the Snack Food in Schools programme. The programme topped up lunchboxes at seven Hurunui schools, with additional funding from the Ministry of Education.
This year, Together Hurunui looked at how it could build on the Snack Food in Schools programme to improve student nutrition. “With the Snack Food in Schools programme, we were limited to supplying processed food that had a longer shelf life, so we looked at the possibility of supplying freezers that could hold more nutritious foods that could be warmed up.”
MainPower provided funding to purchase the two portable freezers, which can be relocated around the district’s schools as needed. Paterson said more freezers could be purchased dependent on further funding.
“We have partnered with Satisfy Food Rescue, to provide food to keep the freezers stocked,” said Paterson.
Paterson will be stocktaking the freezers each month, with reports going to MainPower and Satisfy Food Rescue to ensure supply is responsive to need. Access to the freezers is managed by school staff and the freezers also contain some family meals.
“We’re grateful to our partners for providing the funding to make this a reality, with no impact on our ratepayers,” Paterson said.
Hurunui Mayor Marie Black welcomed the initiative as another example of a community-led solution in rural Hurunui.
“It’s a difficult time for many rural families across North Canterbury who are facing the effects of a prolonged drought coupled with low yields and high interest rates, which all have a knock-on effect on our rural communities.
“Hurunui District Council through the Together Hurunui programme is pleased to be able to support our communities with these meaningful partnerships,” Mayor Black said.
Amuri Area School principal Matt Barlow said the school board “jumped” at the opportunity to be part of the programme. “This is a way to really support our wider school whanau. We are grateful for the support from MainPower and Together Hurunui.”
Pictured below Hurunui Council’s Together Hurunui Facilitator Natalie Paterson and Amuri Area School principal Matt Barlow fill the school’s MainPower Community Pantry freezer with healthy food.
