Mayoral candidate Olivia Chow is promising to provide lunches in school if re-elected, a move she says will save parents an estimated $1,800 per year.
“Prices at big grocery stores just keep rising. With a robust school food program, we can give parents some breathing room. We can save families thousands of dollars a year feeding kids in school. And give parents a break on making lunch every day,” Chow said.
“Back in 1990, Jack Layton and I made a plan to feed every kid in Toronto schools. More than ever, school food can save families money and help kids focus on their teacher, not their hunger. We need to keep moving forward, not backwards.”
The expansion to lunch, she said, will be phased in and will be funded like the existing school food program, which is paid for by the city, other levels of government, and private donations.
“Let’s make universal school lunch a reality,” Chow said at a news conference on Monday morning.
“We will phase it in, test it, do our homework, and we will make it a group project. We will work with the provincial and federal governments to make it happen by 2030.”
Chow previously expanded the school food program to offer a mid-morning meal to 330,000 students across the city.
“We are talking about a real difference in the family budget plus a little bit more time back in your evening so you don’t need to stress about packing lunch,” Chow said.
“It guarantees that every kid will have the energy to learn, to complete, to play.”