School lunches – a foundation for families and key to a sustainable future

A mother of three, Krista Ahola is happy to share her experiences of school lunches as a parent. Known for her blog, Puutalobaby, this family influencer has had many years of experience, as her older two children are in the fourth and sixth grade. Her youngest child remains in home care, but even the little tyke has experienced the city’s summer meals in the playground. 

“School lunches are really a system unique to Finland! They’re free of charge and have lots of variety. They give the children energy for their studies and supplement the family’s resources during the working week, which helps us parents a lot too. They are much more than just a warm meal. In addition to the energy boost, they support learning and allow the children to experience new food cultures,” says Ahola.

“It’s a relief that the children get a warm, nutritious meal during their school days. School lunches are especially important for those children that do not get a second warm meal at home,” she continues.

Adults help create a healthy relationship with food

Ahola praises the diversity of the vegetarian options at school, and says she was surprised to see the variety of different plant proteins. 

“We have an agreement in this family not to talk disparagingly about food, school lunches or different types of diets. It’s important that kids learn to have a healthy and natural attitude towards food. It’s up to us adults to teach them that. We don’t want to have any kinds of attitudes or taboos around food. Showing a positive example is the best way to create a lasting lifestyle for our children,” says Ahola. 

Showing a positive example is the best way to create a lasting lifestyle for our children.

Friends have a massive impact on a primary schooler’s food choices. When children can see a friend take the vegetarian option, it can encourage them to try it out. Ahola also praises the schools for providing two main dishes every day. 

“A diverse menu makes it possible to try new things every once in a while,” says Ahola.

Towards a sustainable food system 

The latest nutrition recommendations, published in November 2024, are an attempt to guide people to choose food that is healthier and better for the environment.  

It is recommended that the intake of red meat is reduced from 500 grams to 350 grams per week and that eating processed meats, such as sausages and cold cuts, is avoided. The recommendations try to guide people towards more plant-based diets, with a larger share of various vegetables and legumes.

“We follow the current customer group-specific nutrition recommendations, such as those for school lunches. As customer group-specific recommendations are updated based on the population-level recommendation, possible changes therein will reflect on school lunches. However, we have been reducing our use of red meat for a few years and legumes are regularly on the menu,” says nutrition specialist Tarja Heikkinen from Palvelukeskus Helsinki. 

We follow the customer group-specific nutrition recommendations, such as those for school lunches. However, we have been reducing our use of red meat for a few years and legumes are regularly on the menu.

Palvelukeskus Helsinki is an enterprise owned by the City of Helsinki with a century of experiences that makes school lunches for roughly 40,000 Helsinki pupils. For fifteen years, pupils have been given the option of a daily vegetarian meal, in addition to which school lunches vary with different themed days, such as organic and local food weeks, holidays and country-based themes.