Lunch at school is a fun time for children. Before they
start eating, they express their gratitude for the foodand for those who made it.

Fish andMeat dish(Meat, fish,egg, andsoybean)

HEALTH & WELFARE
MilkGrain dish(Rice, bread,noodles, andpasta)
Children harvesting rice. Growing and harvesting one’s own food is an
important part of food and nutrition education.

SCHOOLLUNCHES:

After World War II,
Japan instituted
school lunches toimprove children’snutrition. This photo
was taken in Tokyoin 1947.

THE KEY TO CHILDREN’SHEALTH AND PROSPERITYThe healthy growth of children in Japan owes much to the provision ofnutritionally balanced school-lunch menus and a long standing commitment
to nutrition education. Japan also offers school-lunch support internationally,leading to improved nutrition and higher quality learning.
When the morning lessons end,
several students quickly change
into white clothes and race down
the hall as it is their turn to serve
meals to their classmates at school
lunch, a much-awaited time of theDiet and nutrition
teacher NAKADA
Tomoko finds joy
in watching
children eat
happily.

day. Although everyone must eat
without engaging in conversation
due to the COVID-19 pandemic,
there are plenty of smiles aroundas the children take big bites ofnutritious food prepared withseasonal ingredients.
Nutrition is essential to any
child’s healthy growth. Whileundernutrition is a deep-seatedproblem for those living inpoverty, in recent years, manycountries, regardless of theirwealth, have faced complex issues,including overnutrition.

To make progress toward
solving that global problem, Japan
will hold the Tokyo Nutrition
for Growth Summit 2021 inDecember. Today, more thana century since the foundingof the National Institute ofNutrition in Tokyo in 1920,
Japan expects to leverage its
experience in nutritional policy
to build international momentum
surrounding better nutrition.
The three important pillars
of Japan’s nutritional policy are
diet, specialists, and evidence. The
policy recommends that meals
consist of a balanced combinationof staple dishes—such as rice orbread—that provide the bodywith energy, along with main
dishes—such as meat, fish, orsoybeans—that supply protein,and side dishes that deliver

vitamins and minerals. After
World War II, Japan promptly
eliminated nutritional deficiency
with support from internationalorganizations. The country’s
nutrition policy, developed in
response to the malnutrition of its
citizens, became the foundation
for an expanding economy.
Japan’s policy also focused on
training of nutritional specialists
including nutritional educationand food-service management.
Diet and nutrition teachers anddietitians play a key role in settings
where school lunches are served.
Most elementary schools in thecountry provide well-balanced
school lunch menus devised bynutrition teachers and school
nutritionists. These are based onnational standards for nutritional
intake in the implementationof school lunches, which are set
according to the stage of a child’sgrowth. Menus are also creatively
devised to consider children’sfavorite foods.
NAKADA Tomoko, a memberof the board of the Japan Dietetic
Association, is a diet and nutrition
teacher in Tochigi Prefecture. Shesays, “I take care to transform
school-meal menus into learningmaterials. For example, if children
learn in their home economics
classes that traditional local cuisine
is made by using ingredients in a

non-wasteful manner, they will beaware of the need to reduce foodwaste and will be more likely tofinish their meals.” Nakada makes
it a point to impart children withappropriate knowledge throughfood and nutrition education. “Ameal can have consequences for
an individual’s entire life span,starting with the time spent in thewomb. Nothing gives me greater
joy than to see children learn
about nutrition through school
lunches and grow into healthy
adults.”Japan also helps introduce
lunches at schools in othercountries. For the children
receiving those meals, theassistance not only improves theirnutrition but also enhances theoverall quality of their education.
For example, the JapanInternational
Cooperation
Agency ( JICA) has been aiding
local communities in Madagascar

Vegetabledish

This school lunch contains chestnut as a seasonalingredient.

since 2017, helping them serve
community-based school lunches
to children. The assistanceis part of the School for All
project, which seeks to improvea learning environment in which
parents and guardians take turns
preparing school lunches. By
2019, the program had expanded
to 146 schools. While nutritionaldeficiency is still a pressing issue
for children in Madagascar, manycan now get the meals they needfrom their school lunches, which
boosts their motivation to learn.
A fourth-grade teacher says, “Thechildren can concentrate in classon days when we serve lunch.
Community-school
lunches
clearly encourage them to attend
school and participate in thevarious activities there.”
The children unfailingly smilewhen they eat the school lunches
that help them to grow and create
happy memories.

JICA assistance helps local residents provide school meals in Madagascar. JICA