Lebanon has published its first National Nutrition and Food Environment Report in Lebanese Public Schools, an assessment led by the Ministry of Education and Higher Education with the French development agency AFD, the World Food Programme (WFP), UNICEF and the International Orthodox Christian Charity.
Covering every governorate, the study looked at students' nutritional status, eating habits, nutrition knowledge, purchasing and physical activity, together with the food on offer in and around schools. It found a growing burden of overweight and obesity alongside poor dietary diversity: low consumption of nutritious foods and high consumption of sweetened drinks, fast food and ultra-processed foods. More than half of students, 57 percent, did not meet the Global Dietary Recommendations.
Foods not permitted under existing guidance were widely available, and unhealthy foods and drinks were marketed to children through physical and digital channels. Nearly one in five students said they had no snack or money for food during the school day, and limited household purchasing power was noted as a constraint.
Students in schools covered by the school meals programme were more likely to meet dietary recommendations, and food outlets in those schools kept better to nutrition standards. Caregivers said the meals helped children try nutritious foods, eased household costs and made school more enjoyable.
"Children are not making food choices in isolation," said Marco Luigi Corsi, UNICEF's representative in Lebanon, calling for coordinated action by the ministries of education, public health, agriculture, economy and social affairs, and for stronger rules on marketing unhealthy food to children. Allison Oman Lawi, WFP's country director, said nutritious school meals paired with nutrition education and healthier school food environments help children learn and thrive, and that WFP would work to expand sustainable meal programmes that also strengthen local food systems.
Speaking for the education minister, Director General of Education Fadi Yarak cited the emergency expansion of the school meals programme to around 150,000 students as evidence that coordinated action can reach more children. The ambassadors of France and Norway, which support the programme, said the aim is a lasting national school feeding policy led by Lebanese institutions.
Photo: Editorstandard / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Source: WFP
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