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Offering nutritious meals to students can improve diets and counter obesity across Europe.
Read the latest article from Horizon Magazine, featuring a Green Deal-funded programme, SchoolFood4Change, which highlights the positive impact of providing nutritious meals in schools across Europe to improve children's health and combat obesity. It features a primary school in Leuven, Belgium, which serves freshly prepared, organic vegetarian meals as part of the SchoolFood4Change project. The project spans 11 countries, aims to instill healthy eating habits and promotes sustainable food practices, emphasising not only the food served but also its production, sourcing, and educational aspects.
Additionally, research from another EU-funded project, STOP, underscores the link between childhood obesity and socioeconomic factors, advocating for comprehensive approaches to address health disparities and environmental influences on obesity, such as implementing physical activity programs and supporting healthy lifestyles from a young age.
The SchoolFood4Change project's holistic approach to promoting healthy eating habits in schools aligns with the EU's goal of providing free school meals for children in need and contributes to combating childhood obesity. Research from the STOP project emphasises the importance of addressing socioeconomic factors and environmental influences on obesity, advocating for innovative approaches such as parent-focused apps and collaborations with public health agencies to implement effective interventions.
These efforts underscore the multifaceted nature of addressing childhood obesity and promoting overall health and well-being in children across Europe.
Read the article from Horizon Magazine.
View the SchoolFood4Change Success Story in the Green Deal Projects Support Office.