Impact of COVID-19 School-Related Policies in Ontario on Parents’ School Lunch Packing Habits
Publication: Canadian Journal of Dietetic Practice and Research
25 August 2022
Abstract
Purpose: COVID-19 has disrupted the daily routines of many Canadian families. In Ontario, provincially mandated public health measures have resulted in significant changes to school policies, including those related to food. The impact of COVID-19 related school food policies on parental lunch packing habits is unknown; therefore, this study investigated how school-related COVID-19 policies have impacted parental school lunch packing habits.
Methods: Parents (N = 287) of school-aged children were recruited from parent-specific Facebook groups across Ontario, Canada, to complete an online survey regarding lunch packing habits. This survey was developed based on findings from a previously conducted scoping review. Open-ended survey responses were inductively analyzed.
Results: Three over-arching themes were constructed: (1) Food Programs and COVID-19; (2) Schedule Changes; and (3) School Policy Changes. Parents explained that the cancellation or modification of food programs at schools, changes to the length of time children are given to eat at school, and removal of access to microwaves, garbage cans, and teacher assistance during lunch have forced parents to change their lunch packing habits.
Conclusion: Findings from this study demonstrate a need for better support to help ease the burden parents experience when packing their child’s school lunch, during an already extremely stressful time.
Résumé
Objectif. La COVID-19 a perturbé la routine quotidienne de nombreuses familles canadiennes. En Ontario, les mesures de santé publique imposées par la province ont entraîné des changements considérables dans les politiques scolaires, entre autres en ce qui concerne les aliments. On ne connaît pas l’impact des politiques alimentaires scolaires liées à la COVID-19 sur les habitudes des parents quant à la préparation des dîners pour l’école, et c’est sur cet impact que portait cette étude.
Méthodes. Des parents (N = 287) d’enfants d’âge scolaire ont été recrutés à partir de groupes Facebook axés sur la parentalité en Ontario, au Canada, pour répondre à un sondage en ligne sur les habitudes de préparation des dîners pour l’école. Ce sondage a été élaboré sur la base des conclusions d’un examen de la portée réalisé préalablement. Les réponses aux questions ouvertes du sondage ont été analysées de manière inductive.
Résultats. Trois thèmes généraux ont été établis : (1) programmes alimentaires et COVID-19; (2) changements d’horaires; et (3) changements de politique scolaire. Les parents ont expliqué que l’annulation ou la modification de programmes alimentaires dans les écoles, les changements quant au temps accordé aux enfants pour manger à l’école et le retrait de l’accès à des micro-ondes, à des poubelles et à l’aide des enseignants pendant le dîner ont obligé les parents à changer leurs habitudes de préparation des dîners.
Conclusions. Les conclusions de cette étude révèlent la nécessité de mieux soutenir les parents afin d’alléger le fardeau de la préparation des dîners pour l’école au cours d’une période déjà extrêmement stressante.
Get full access to this article
View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.
References
1
Carroll N, Sadowski A, Laila A, Hruska V, Nixon M, Ma DWL, et al. The Impact of COVID-19 on health behavior, stress, financial and food security among middle to high income Canadian families with young children. Nutrients. 2020;12(8):2352.
2
Deaton BJ and Deaton BJ. Food security and Canada’s agricultural system challenged by Covid-19: One Year Later. Canadian Journal of Agricultural Economics/Revue canadienne d’agroeconomie. 2021;69(2):161–166.
3
Charlebois S, McGuinty E, Keselj V, Music J, Guisto A, Kevany K, et al. Canada’s Food Price Report 10th Edition. [Internet]. Agri-Food Analytics Lab; 2020 [cited 2022Jan10]. Available from: https://cdn.dal.ca/content/dam/dalhousie/pdf/sites/agri-food/Canada%20Food%20Price%20Report%20Eng%202020.pdf.
4
Charlebois S, Gerhardt A, Taylor S, Kane M, Keselj V, Fitting E, et al. Canada’s Food Price Report 11th Edition. [Internet]. Agri-Food Analytics Lab; 2021 [cited 2022Jan10]. Available from: https://cdn.dal.ca/content/dam/dalhousie/pdf/sites/agri-food/Food%20Price%20Report%202021%20-%20EN%20(December%208).pdf
5
Deaton BJ and Deaton BJ. Food security and Canada’s agricultural system challenged by Covid-19. Can J Agric Econ. 2020;68(2):143–149.
6
Taves R, O’Donnell G. An analysis of trends in Canadian consumer demand and sales using transaction data for grocery products amid the COVID-19 pandemic. [Internet]. Canadian Consumers Prepare for COVID-19. Government of Canada, Statistics Canada; 2020 [cited 2021Mar14]. Available from: https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/62f0014m/62f0014m2020004-eng.htm
7
Hobbs JE. Food supply chains during the COVID-19 pandemic. Can J Agric Econ. 2020;68(2):171–176.
8
Katamay SW, Esslinger KA, Vigneault M, Johnston JL, Junkins BA, Robbins LG, et al. Eating well with Canada’s food guide (2007): development of the food intake pattern. Nutr Rev. 2007;65(4):155–166.
9
Operational guidance: COVID-19 management in schools [Internet]. ontario.ca. 2020 [cited 2021Mar21]. Available from: https://www.ontario.ca/page/operational-guidance-covid-19-management-schools#section-0
10
COVID-19 and School Reopening – Public Health Information for Parents/Guardians. [cited 2021Mar21]. Available from: https://www.myhealthunit.ca/en/health-topics/covid-19-and-school-reopening-public-health-information-for-families.asp
11
Tugault-Lafleur CN, Black JL, and Barr SI. Lunch-time food source is associated with school hour and school day diet quality among Canadian children. J Hum Nutr Diet. 2017;31(1):96–107.
12
Dorman SC, Gauthier AP, Laurence M, Thirkill L, and Kabaroff JL. Photographic examination of student lunches in schools using the balanced school day versus traditional school day schedules. ICAN. 2013;5(2):78–84.
13
Board H-WDS. HWDSB Return to School Plan – September 2020 [Internet]. HWDSB Return to School Plan – September 2020 | Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board. [cited 2021Mar21]. Available from: https://www.hwdsb.on.ca/return-to-school-plan/
14
Health and Safety Measures [Internet]. Toronto District School Board. [cited 2021Mar21]. Available from: https://www.tdsb.on.ca/In-Person-Learning/Health-and-Safety/Health-and-Safety-Measures
15
Kinsey EW, Kinsey D, and Rundle AG. COVID-19 and Food Insecurity: an Uneven Patchwork of Responses. J Urban Health. 2020;97(3):332–335.
16
Rundle AG, Park Y, Herbstman JB, Kinsey EW, and Wang YC. COVID-19–Related School Closings and Risk of Weight Gain Among Children. Obesity. 2020;28(6):1008–1009.
17
Van Lancker W and Parolin Z. COVID-19, school closures, and child poverty: a social crisis in the making. Lancet Public Health. 2020;5(5).
18
Government of Ontario. Approach to reopening schools for the 2020-2021 school year; 2020 [cited 2021Mar21]. Available from: https://www.ontario.ca/page/approach-reopening-schools-2020-2021-school-year
19
Taras H. Nutrition and student performance at school. J Sch Health. 2005;75(6):199–213.
20
World Health Organization. Noncommunicable diseases: risk factors; 2019 [cited 2021 Mar 12]. Available from: http://www.who.int/gho/ncd/risk_factors/en/index.html.
21
Hubbard KL, Must A, Eliasziw M, Folta SC, and Goldberg J. What’s in children’s backpacks: foods brought from home. J Acad Nutr Diet. 2014;114(9):1424–1431.
22
O’Rourke B, Shwed A, Bruner B, and Ferguson K. What’s for Lunch? Investigating the Experiences, Perceptions, and Habits of Parents and School Lunches: a Scoping Review. J Sch Health. 2020;90(10):812–819.
23
Braun V and Clarke V. Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qual Res Psych. 2006;3(2):77–101.
24
Braun V, Clarke V. Thematic Analysis. In: Cooper H, Camic PM, Long DL, et al. eds. APA handbook of research methods in psychology, Vol. 2. Research designs: quantitative, qualitative, neuropsychological, and biological. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association; 2012. p. 57–71.
25
Cluver L, Lachman JM, Sherr L, Wessels I, Krug E, Rakotomalala S, et al. Parenting in a time of COVID-19. Lancet. 2020;395(10231):e64.
26
US Department of Agriculture Food and Nutrition Service. National School Lunch Program. [cited 15 Feb 2020] Available at: https://www.fns.usda.gov/nslp.
27
Hernandez K, Engler-Stringer R, Kirk S, Wittman H, and McNicholl S. The case for a Canadian national school food program. CFS/RCÉA. 2018;5(3):208–229.
28
Andersen R, Biltoft-Jensen A, Christensen T, Andersen EW, Ege M, Thorsen AV, et al. Dietary effects of introducing school meals based on the New Nordic Diet – a randomised controlled trial in Danish children. The OPUS School Meal Study. Br J Nutr. 2014;111(11):1967–1976.
29
Government of Ontario. [Internet] Ontario School Food and Beverage Policy; 2011 [cited 2021May 23]. Available from: http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/healthyschools/healthyschoolselementary_web.pdf
30
Government of Canada. [Internet] Safe School Lunches [cited 2021May23]. Available from: https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/seasonal-food-safety/safe-school-lunches.html
31
Taylor JP, Hernandez KJ, Caiger JM, Giberson D, MacLellan D, Sweeney-Nixon M, et al. Nutritional quality of children’s school lunches: differences according to food source. Public Health Nutr. 2012;15(12):2259–2264.
32
Rogers IS, Ness AR, Hebditch K, Jones LR, and Emmett PM. Quality of food eaten in English primary schools: school dinners vs packed lunches. Eur J Clin Nutr. 2007;61(7):856–864.
33
Michie S, van Stralen MM, and West R. The behaviour change wheel: a new method for characterising and designing behaviour change interventions. Implement Sci. 2011;6(1).
34
Roberts EM. Negotiating food choice: parents’ perception of children’s eating behaviour. Anthropological Notebooks. 2006;12(1):63–77.
35
Gadermann AC, Thomson KC, Richardson CG, Gagné M, McAuliffe C, Hirani S, et al. Examining the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on family mental health in Canada: findings from a national cross-sectional study. BMJ Open. 2021;11(1).
36
Racine N, Hetherington E, McArthur BA, McDonald S, Edwards S, Tough S, et al. Maternal depressive and anxiety symptoms before and during the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada: a longitudinal analysis. Lancet Psychiatry. 2021;0(0).
37
Bathgate K and Begley A. ‘It’s very hard to find what to put in the kid’s lunch’: what Perth parents think about food for school lunch boxes. Nutr Diet. 2011;68(1):21–26.
38
Ensaff H, Bunting E, and O’Mahony S. “That’s His Choice Not Mine!” Parents’ perspectives on providing a packed lunch for their children in primary school. J Nutr Educ Behav. 2018;50(4):357–364.e1.
39
Government of Canada. [Internet]. Census Profile, 2016 Census - Northeast [Economic region], Ontario and Ontario [Province]; 2016 [cited 2022Jan10]. Available from: https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2016/dp-pd/prof/details/page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo1=ER&Code1=3590&Geo2=PR&Code2=35&SearchText=Northeast&SearchType=Begins&SearchPR=01&B1=All&GeoLevel=PR&GeoCode=3590&TABID=1&type=0
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Canadian Journal of Dietetic Practice and Research
Volume 84 • Number 1 • March 2023
Pages: 10 - 16
Editor: Naomi Cahill
History
Received: 4 July 2021
Accepted: 1 June 2022
Version of record online: 25 August 2022
Copyright
© 2023.
Key Words
Mots-clés
Authors
Metrics & Citations
Metrics
Other Metrics
Citations
Cite As
AlannaShwedMSc, BrianneO’RourkeMSc, BrendaBrunerPhD, and KristenFergusonPhD. 2023. Impact of COVID-19 School-Related Policies in Ontario on Parents’ School Lunch Packing Habits. Canadian Journal of Dietetic Practice and Research.
84(1): 10-16. https://doi.org/10.3148/cjdpr-2022-022
Export Citations
If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.
There are no citations for this item
View Options
Login options
Check if you access through your login credentials or your institution to get full access on this article.
Subscribe
Click on the button below to subscribe to Canadian Journal of Dietetic Practice and Research
