Health Coalition not convinced Ka Ora Ka Ako meals are healthy

Checkpoint

Chicken Katsu, tex mex mince beef, pasta salad, and butter chicken are all on the menu for the government's Ka Ora, Ka Ako school lunch programme, but maybe not as you know and love them. Looking at photos of the meals it's a little tricky to determine what's, what, without specific labels. One for example has two scoops of white rice and half a takeaway container of whats looks like meat in a brown gravy like sauce. All students Year 0 to 8 will get a 240 gram meal and older students get a larger 340 gram meal with extras like fruit , yoghurt and museli bars. Priced at $3 to $4 a pop, the government's managed to carve $130 million off the so called healthy school lunch programme. The school lunch collective is led by Compass group with 17 other food suppliers and manufacturers in supporting roles. But the Health Coalition is not convinced the pre-made meals are indeed healthy. Nutritionist and spokesperson Dr Sally Mackay spoke to Lisa Owen.