A healthy canteen
All school canteens in Western Australia must comply with the Department of Education’s Student Health in Public Schools procedures, Appendix B. Healthy Food and Drink. This policy supports students health by promoting healthy food and drink options in the school canteen according to:
- Health Promoting Schools Framework.
- Australian Dietary Guidelines; Guide to Healthy Eating.
- A traffic light system of classifying food and drinks as GREEN, AMBER or RED to measure menu compliance.Β
FreshSNAP can support school canteens implement healthy changes. Start your journey today!
How can FreshSNAP help?
FreshSNAP can support your canteen in the creation of a nourishing canteen menu by:
- Providing FREE recipes that have already been assessed against the WA School Food and Drink criteria.
- Providing FREE resources and training to upskill staff.Β
- FoodChecker. Our online menu assessment tool to quickly and accurately assess menus.Β
Your online menu assessment tool
The FreshSNAP team has launched FoodChecker to support WA schools in creating a canteen menu that ensures students have access to nutritious food and drink options and are empowered to make positive, healthy choices.
Once you have used FoodChecker you can be confident that your menu meets the gold standard in healthy nutrition for growing kids.
Healthy canteens to nourish the school community!
Are you familiar with the Healthy Food and Drink policy?
Read our many factsheets and complete the online learning modules (coming soon!) to learn about the requirements of the Department of Education’s Student Healthy in Public Schools Procedures Appendix B. Healthy Food and Drink.
Assess your menu on FoodChecker
Make any necessary changes or discuss with the freshSNAP team strategies to improve your menu.
Implement and promote your menu!
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Fresh factsheets and recipes designed for canteens.
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Yes. As of January 2024 the Healthy Food and Drink Policy has been incorporated into the Department of Education’s Student Health in Public Schools Policy. You can access the requirements about healthy food and drink provision by accessing the Student Health in Public Schools procedures, Appendix B. Healthy Food and Drink.
There are now more food and drinks classified as GREEN! The freshSNAP team are here to guide and support you through the changes.
Canteen/food service menus must meet the following requirements:
- GREEN items β account for a minimum of 60% of the menu
- AMBER items β account for a maximum of 40% of the menu, with savoury commercial products that are AMBER items offered on a maximum of two days per week:
- Where an AMBER item has been reclassified as a RED item it may be included on the menu and included in your AMBER count. These items may only be offered on the same two days a week as AMBERβs savoury commercial products. You can learn more about theseΒ βselected RED itemsβ here
- This cannot be applied retrospectively. Once a RED item has been removed from a menu, it cannot be re-introduced.
- RED items – are not to be on the menu.
The Department of Health Western Australia has developed the WA School Food and Drink CriteriaΒ to classify food and drinks provided in WA schools according to the traffic light system: GREEN (healthiest), AMBER, or RED (less healthy).Β The WA School Food and Drink Criteria underpins theΒ Β Student Health in Public Schools procedures, Appendix B. Healthy Food and Drink.
Some menu items will have a new traffic light classification. Use FoodChecker to check the classification of menu items.
There are now more food and drinks classified as GREEN! Examples of items that are now GREEN include:
- Full fat dairy (milk, cheese and yoghurt)
- All canned vegetables, legumes and fish (there is no longer a need to be salt reduced to be GREEN)
- Cheese and cracker snack packs
- Plain popcorn
To learn more about the classification of menu items, complete our free online training (coming soon!), download our factsheets and assess your menu using FoodChecker.
The Department of Education Student Health in Public Schools procedures, Appendix B. Healthy Food and Drink permits the sale of βselected RED itemsβ in WA school canteens. These βselected RED itemsβ are included in the maximum 40% AMBER count and may only be offered on the same two days a week as AMBER savoury commercial products.Β Once a βselected RED itemβ has been removed from a menu it cannot be re-introduced.
βSelected RED itemsβ must meet the WA School Food and Drink Criteria to be sold in WA school canteens. If the criteria are not met, the item is classified as RED and cannot be on the menu.
You can learn more aboutΒ βselected RED itemsβ here,Β or search for the product inΒ FoodCheckerΒ to check its classification.
To assess a product, recipe or full menu visitΒ FoodChecker.
FoodChecker is a one-of-a-kind digital tool which supports WA schools in creating healthy food and drink environments. This FREE online tools allows you to assess recipes and products to find out their traffic light classification.
FreshSNAP offers free training for canteen staff, teaching staff and university students. These sessions can be offered in person or online depending on participant numbers and content topics. Sign up to our mailing list to stay up to date with upcoming public training sessions or contact the team today to discuss your requirements.
Yes, all FreshSNAP services are free of charge. Β
It might seem like there are a lot of changes, the freshSNAP team is here to support you and are just a phone call or email away. You can contact us by calling (08) 6182 2260 or emailing freshsnap@nnf.org.au
Donβt forget to connect with us onΒ FacebookΒ andΒ InstagramΒ too!
Follow us @freshsnapwa
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