The Role of the School Food Environment in Improving the Healthiness of School Canteens and Readiness to Reopen Post COVID-19 Pandemic: A Study Conducted in Indonesia

Abstract

Background: Indonesian school children spend one-third of their time in school, where they are exposed to a variety of foods at school canteens. However, the healthiness of school canteens is not yet well understood. This study was conducted to (1) characterize the healthiness and quality of management of school canteens, and (2) measure readiness of school canteens to reopen following COVID-19 closures.Design and Methods: Mixed-methods were used to conduct a cross-sectional study. Data were collected from schools located in the Bantul District of Indonesia. Primary schools (n=152) were randomly selected, with a final sample size of 147. Data were collected using Google Forms, delivered via WhatsApp or email. School canteens were classified as healthy if they had a Healthy Canteen Score (HCS) >= 10, or unhealthy if they had a HCS < 10.Results: Less than half (43.5%) of school canteens were deemed to be healthy. School canteens were more likely to be healthy if the canteen manager had a formal decision letter (OR=15.2; 95% CI=3.7-62.5); used print material messaging (OR= 3.2 to 4.6 times); or received inspection by external officers periodically (OR=2.8; 95% CI= 1.04-7.5). Readiness to reopen was 4.5 (OR=4.5; 95%CI: 1.1-17.9) times higher among schools that had their own canteen, and 4 (OR=3.9; 95% CI =1.1-13.8) times higher among schools located in rural areas, adjusting for the remaining variables.Conclusions: School canteen healthiness can be improved by implementing national food policy and healthy school canteen standards accompanied by the existence of good management practices within schools, particularly following the COVID-19 pandemic.

Parents' perceived risks and benefits on avoidance of street food near schools in Indonesia: Moderating role of school type

“…This study highlights existing concerns regarding how to create a better school food environment for Indonesian children (Hadi et al, 2022; Syah et al, 2015). Effective risk management should involve considering the perspectives of consumers in the context being assessed, in addition to assessment by managers.…”

“…While certain Indonesian private schools take on the responsibility of providing lunches to students and restrict their ability to leave the school premises during breaks, the situation in most public schools is notably different. Public schools typically do not offer school lunches and allow children to freely purchase food either from the school cafeteria or nearby vendors (Hadi et al, 2022; Nurhidayati et al, 2017). Furthermore, public schools are governed by government regulations and standards, resulting in limited parental involvement in their children's school activities (Hendajany, 2016).…”

“…Frequently, street foods may lack freshness and contain excessive additives. Alarming data reveal that around half of the street food available near schools contains harmful chemicals like sodium cyclamate and saccharin as artificial sweeteners, as well as sodium benzoate as a preservative (Hadi et al, 2022; Rachmadewi et al, 2021). To make matters worse, street food is often contaminated with pollutants, sewage, unclean water, and even cigarette smoke (Cempaka et al, 2019; Damastuti et al, 2021; Dyna et al, 2018; Rosida & Windraswara, 2017).…”

Pivoting school health and nutrition programmes during COVID-19 in low- and middle-income countries: A scoping review

“…Most studies were observational by design (n = 13), such as cross-sectional, cohort, and case studies [ 13 - 16 , 19 - 21 , 23 , 24 , 26 , 30 , 31 ]. Five were experimental studies, which included cluster-randomised controlled trials (n = 2) [ 29 , 35 ], quasi-experimental studies (QES) (n = 2) [ 22 , 34 ], and a feasibility cluster quasi-experimental study (n = 1) [ 33 ].…”

“…The remaining studies (n = 3) were comprised of recommendations related to adapting school health programmes during the COVID-19 pandemic [ 25 , 27 , 32 ]. The following regions were represented across included studies: African Region (n = 7) [ 13 , 14 , 16 - 18 , 26 , 31 ], Region of the Americas (n = 5) [ 15 , 22 – 24 , 30 ], Southeast Asian Region (n = 5) [ 19 , 25 , 27 , 29 , 32 ], Western Pacific Region (n = 4) [ 28 , 33 – 35 ], and the Eastern Mediterranean Region (n = 2) [ 20 , 21 ] ( Table 2 ).…”