As food prices reach record highs, classrooms are getting Hungry, and Kids Can have said they are feeding 10,000 more students than they were at the beginning of 2022.
“It’s the worst we have ever seen it,” said Julie Chapman, Chief Executive of KidsCan to NZ Herald.
The organisation supports 1,000 schools and daycares. In terms one and two, the number of children in need sat at 44,000. In term four, this rose to 54,500. Parents are living in deficit, and teachers and principals are breaking down for the first time in 17 years due to students' food deprivation levels.
“The kids are tired about 20 minutes into class time. They are literally lying on the floor, and I am thinking, ‘what on earth is the matter?’ They can’t concentrate because they haven’t got anything in their tummy,” said Katrina Nock, Principal of Edmund Hillary School to NZ Herald.
Hungry students can be credited to rising food prices. The war in Ukraine, labour shortages, supply problems and poor local growing conditions.
