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National School Food Program – 2025 to 2027 Action Plan – Prince Edward Island

Note: This action plan has been re-formatted to meet accessibility requirements of Government of Canada webpages.

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List of abbreviations
CSLF
La Commission scolaire de langue française
EEY
Department of Education and Early Years
PEI
Government of Prince Edward Island
PEISFP
PEI School Food Program
PSB
Public Schools Branch
PWYC
Pay-What-You-Can
SDS
Department of Social Development and Seniors

Section 1 - Introduction/overview

The Government of Prince Edward Island (PEI) supports families by ensuring that school-aged children have equitable access to nutritious food options through the universally accessible lunch program ("Bon Appétit") and the free breakfast and snack programs offered at all PEI schools. The provincial education system consists of two education authorities: the Public Schools Branch (PSB) and La Commission scolaire de langue française (CSLF).

These authorities operate 62 elementary, intermediate, and senior high schools (56 English / 6 French first language), and 12 alternative education programs, and provide a wide range of education and support services to approximately 22,100 students.

The universally accessible breakfast, snack, and lunch programs within the publicly funded education system:

Provincial lunch program

Bon Appétit is a provincial lunch program that provides all PEI students (K-12) universal access to a healthy and affordable lunch option each day. The PEI School Food Program (PEISFP) Inc. is a nonprofit organization and registered charity that is responsible for the successful development and delivery of the provincial lunch program.

The provincial lunch program uses three models of food service delivery and support. First, it uses a hub model in many PEI schools. In this model, food is prepared within eight large, centralized schools that serve as hubs for smaller surrounding schools within the PSB. These centralized hubs generally provide access to meals within those schools and their associated family of schools. Each hub employs PEISFP staff who prepare and package the food on a daily basis. These staff vary depending on the size and capacity of the hub, but generally include a kitchen manager, cooks, and kitchen assistants.

Second, PEISFP utilizes a vendor model to provide food where school food hubs are not established. Under this model, five community-based commercial vendors are contracted to prepare and deliver healthy meals to schools. These vendors are local, for-profit businesses that are utilized within PSB schools, and PEISFP individually negotiates bulk purchase rates to contain food costs as much as possible.

Finally, PEISFP maintains an arrangement with the CSLF to support school-specific meal provision within PEI's French first-language schools. This arrangement continues to evolve and has involved support for meal planning and menu preparation, sharing program communications, supporting schools through the Pay-What-You-Can (PWYC) Program, and working with five CSLF vendors who provide food to students within some of PEI's French schools. These vendors are a mix of non-profit organizations, and small local businesses such as daycares.

To help ensure program efficiency and effectiveness, PEISFP coordinates regular internal quality control measures (such as parent and administrator surveys, food waste audits, etc.).

A multi-year funding agreement between the Department of Social Development and Seniors (SDS) and PEISFP was executed in July 2025. In addition, PEISFP recently completed work on their new 2025-2028 organizational strategic plan.

Special dietary needs

Student safety is a priority for PEISFP. It aims to ensure that those with special dietary needs can participate in the provincial lunch program. Presently:

The PEISFP uses a PWYC payment model for the lunch program, where families and students can choose the amount they pay for each meal, for any amount between $0 (where the meal is obtained for free) or the full price (currently a maximum of $5.75 per meal). Using this PWYC payment model ensures that all PEI students have barrier-free access to healthy meals for the duration of the school year.

During the 2024 to 2025 school year, over 1,000,000 school lunches were distributed to PEI students. Based on past trends and early indicators for the current school year, it is anticipated that there will be further increases in utilization of the provincial lunch program during the 2025 to 2026 school year.

The Government of PEI provides funding support to PEISFP based on enrollment levels, food costs, and anticipated revenue from the PWYC mechanism. As a result of these factors, program costs are anticipated to increase for the 2025 to 2026 school year.

Uptake and enrollment have been steadily increasing within PEISFP's provincial lunch program. Since its creation, the program has experienced continual growth in total meals served, registered diners, and overall student participation rates. Ongoing increases in demand for this program are strong indicators of unmet need in PEI communities, as more families turn to the provincial lunch program to access healthy meals for their school-aged children.

At the same time, revenue generated through the PWYC cost recovery mechanism has been steadily declining as fewer families are able to pay for the costs of their children's meals. The steady decline in revenue generated through this PWYC mechanism is a strong indicator that many PEI residents face financial barriers preventing them from paying the costs associated with accessing a healthy meal.

When considered together, the decline in PWYC revenue and the increases in both demand and expenditures are indicators of the ongoing need for meal support for PEI children and families. As demand continues to grow, and revenue continues to decline, the funding pressures within the provincial lunch program will continue to present challenges for program administrators.

Breakfast/snack programs

Since 2008, the Department of Education and Early Years (EEY) has provided funding to support school-based, volunteer-led breakfast and snack programs that are universally accessible for all students, free of charge, and provided in a non-stigmatizing way.

Over the years, there has been steady growth in the:

There are a variety of arrangements in place for these programs that involve partnerships between the local communities, school administrators, and the EEY (through the provision of funding and policy support). While this approach has allowed schools to determine how to best meet local needs given the resources available to them, it has led to a patchwork of programs that vary in scope and access to financial resources.

Policy context

On August 30, 2024, the Auditor General of PEI published a report on the healthiness of food in schoolsFootnote 1. This report considered issues such as the current state of school nutrition policies, monitoring and reporting on healthy eating in schools, and compliance with school nutrition policies.

The report found that PEISFP was fully compliant with school nutrition policies. However, the report contained a series of recommendations that identify areas of improvement within other programs in the school food environment. These recommendations include the need to update school nutrition policies to reflect current best practice, increase monitoring and oversight of school compliance with their respective school nutrition policy, and to work with schools to address barriers to compliance. Both the PSB and the CSLF have committed to working with the EEY, and other education system partners, to respond to the Auditor General's recommendations.

Section 2 - Implementation plan

Over the two-year term of this Action Plan (2025 to 2026, 2026 to 2027) funding provided under the Canada - Prince Edward Island National School Food Program Agreement 2024 to 2027 will be used to support all of the activities outlined below (see Section 4 for a more detailed breakdown). This will be achieved through enhanced core funding that recognizes the ongoing growth and evolution of the PEISFP, additional investments to support the growth of school-based breakfast and snack programs, and the establishment of a policy position focused on nutrition. Through the provision of these funds, the following activities will be undertaken:

1. Operational support for the PEISFP

2. Ensure strong governance and policy alignment for all PEI school food programs

3. Increase supports to PEI schools for breakfast and snack programs

Section 3 - Indicators, targets and expected results

To support oversight of federal funding, the Government of PEI is proposing to monitor and report annually on a number of key indicators. This reporting will measure program growth and performance against the baseline 2024 to 2025 school year. As part of this Agreement, and in alignment with the identified priorities noted above, the Government of PEI commits to annual reporting on the indicators in the table below (with baseline figures for 2024 to 2025 indicated).

Targets

Due to the provincial scope of existing programming, the Government of PEI is proposing to utilize federal funding to support expansion of the provincial lunch program and school-based breakfast and snack programs. The targets identified below are based on this approach.

The projected increases below that are attributable to federal funding include:

Table 1: Baseline and targets
Reportable Indicator 2024 to 2025 Baseline 2025 to 2026 Target 2026 to 2027 Target
Number of children served through the provincial lunch program 12,313 unique students accessed the program at some point during the school year 13,000 unique students will access the program at some point during the school year 13,500 unique students will access the program at some point during the school year
Total number of meals served through the provincial lunch program 1,017,492 1,100,000 1,180,000
Average number of meals served per day within the provincial lunch program 4,981 5,300 5,600
Total number of vegetarian meals served within the provincial lunch program 220,397 235,000 250,000
Total number of gluten free meals served within the provincial lunch program 59,258 63,500 65,000
Financial supports provided to PEISFP for food programming $7,021,000 in fiscal year (FY) 2024 to 2025 $7,291,703 in FY 2025 to 2026 $7,291,703 in FY 2026 to 2027
Numbers of vendors and hubs within the provincial lunch program 6 hubs, 7 vendors 2024 to 2025 8 hubs, 5 vendors in 2025 to 2026 10 hubs, 3 vendors in 2026 to 2027
Number of schools with enhanced lunch programs 62 62 62
Number** of children served through breakfast and snack programs (where available) 17,000 unique students accessed the program at some point during the school year 17,500 unique students will access the program at some point during the school year 18,000 unique students will access the program at some point during the school year
Number of schools and students with access to a hub 6 schools; 9,042 students have access to a hub 8 schools; 11,473 students have access to a hub 10 schools; 16,380 students have access to a hub
Financial supports provided to schools for breakfast and snack programs $495,000 $510,000 $510,000
Number of meals served in breakfast and snack programs per week during the school year 77,000 78,500 80,000
Number of schools with enhanced breakfast/snack programs 62 62 62

These 62 schools represent 56 elementary, intermediate, and senior high schools operated by PSB, as well as six schools operated by CSLF. In addition, there are 12 alternative education programs who receive food programming in affiliation with PSB schools. These 12 programs are not represented in the total number of schools.

For the purpose of baseline reporting under this Action Plan, PEI has 56 schools within PSB, 6 schools within CSFL, 1 school operated by Lennox Island First Nation, and 12 Alternative Education Programs with physical locations. Together, these schools and programs serve approximately 22,100 students, and all schools/programs have access to the provincial lunch program and breakfast/snack programs.

In addition to the metrics noted above, where possible and applicable, through future reporting the Government of PEI will note any additional qualitative or quantitative information related to infrastructure improvements, and any changes to the school list provided as part of the 2024 to 2025 PEI Action Plan. PEI will also work towards enhancing the school list to include further disaggregation where feasible (for example, separating out breakfast and snack data).

Section 4 - Expenditures

To support the activities identified in the Implementation Plan noted in Section 2, the Government of PEI will allocate federal funding for:

Table 2: Yearly expenditures
Fiscal Year Total Federal Funding Lunch Program Operational Support Breakfast/Snack Program Support Policy Support
2025 to 2026 $ 2,467,703 $2,233,703 $130,000 $104,000
2026 to 2027* $ 2,467,703 $2,233,703 $130,000 $104,000

For fiscal year 2025 to 2026 and fiscal year 2026 to 2027, respectively, this would result in the following breakdown of federal and provincial spending to support school-based food initiatives:

Table 3: Federal and provincial expenditures
Funding Source Total Funding Lunch Program Operational Support Breakfast/Snack Program Support Policy Support
Federal $2,467,703 $2,233,703 $130,000 $104,000
Provincial $5,438,000 $5,058,000 $380,000 $0
Total $7,905,703 $7,291,703 $510,000 $104,000

Where possible, through future reporting, the Government of PEI will further categorize expenditure activities (for example, funding for hubs versus funding for quality control, etc.).

Section 5 - Indigenous collaboration

Lennox Island First Nation

John J. Sark Memorial School (K-6) is located in Lennox Island First Nation and is the only band-operated school in Epekwitk (PEI). SDS directly funds Lennox Island First Nation to operate the school lunch program at John J. Sark Memorial School. This ensures that the approximately 50 children who attend the school are provided access to meals that are aligned with Indigenous teachings and culture.

Indigenous students from John J. Sark Memorial School attend Hernewood Intermediate for grades 7-9, and Westisle Composite High School for grades 10-12 (which is a PEISFP school food hub location). Indigenous students attending these public schools all have barrier-free access to healthy lunches offered by the PEISFP.

SDS staff are exploring the opportunity to establish a long-term stable funding agreement with Lennox Island First Nation, to support ongoing culturally appropriate food programming for school-aged children.

Abegweit First Nation

Abegweit First Nation does not operate an on-reserve school. Students from the Abegweit First Nation Band in Scotchfort and Morell attend either Mount Stewart Consolidated (K-8), or Morell Consolidated (K-8), and then attend Morell Regional High School (9-12). These schools have a high participation rate in the provincial lunch program offered by the PEISFP.

Students from the Abegweit First Nation Band in Rocky Point attend Westwood Primary (K-3), Elliot River Elementary (4-6), East Wiltshire Intermediate (7-9) and Bluefield High School (10-12). These schools also have high participation rates in the school lunch program.

PEISFP has outlined in their strategic plan several strategies to engage with communities to ensure collaboration with Indigenous communities. This includes empowering students to experience more nutritious and culturally diverse food through student engagement and continuous improvement, exploring the development of a stigma-reducing model, and strengthening Board governance including diversity of representation.

All Indigenous students who attend public schools in the PSB or CSLF have access to breakfast/snack programs and the provincial lunch program. Through the creation of the new, long term funding agreement with PEISFP, SDS has ensured the PEISFP commitment to engagement with First Nations communities and stakeholders on school food programming, and how to best meet the needs of First Nations children attending PEI public schools.

Section 6 - Official Language Minority Communities (OLMCs)

Commission scolaire de langue française

There are six schools operated by the CSLF, and all six participate in the provincial lunch program:

In 2023 to 2024, a pilot was conducted at École Evangeline to assess the feasibility of adopting the PEISFP menus, recipes, and online ordering system (used by all schools in the PSB and by École St. Augustin). Overall, the pilot was successful and École Evangeline continues to utilize these supports. PEISFP hopes that similar models will be considered at the other four CSLF schools. These schools have received support in the form of menu reviews, feedback provision, and financial subsidies for the PWYC program.

The contract requirements for the 2024 to 2025 school year enhanced reporting and communication and addressed administrative challenges for improved efficiency within PEI's francophone first-language schools. Ongoing discussions among EEY, SDS, PEISFP and CSLF are exploring ways to best serve the meal needs of school-aged children within the CSLF. The long-term funding agreement with PEISFP commits all parties to a collaborative process that works to identify and resolve ongoing issues related to school food programming in PEI's francophone schools.

The most recent strategic plan for PEISFP Inc. outlines plans to enhance involvement and communication with CSLF.

Section 7 - Reporting

The Government of PEI commits to preparing an annual report and audited financial statement for each fiscal year, no later than October 1, 2026, and October 1, 2027, outlining the investments and results of the previous fiscal year. The annual reports will report on results for indicators as set out in Section 3 of the Action Plan, a narrative description of the activities, expenditures and results, as set out in Section 2 of the Action Plan, and describe any consultation processes.

Appendix A - Summary of National School Food Policy Principles

The program model and initiatives outlined in this Action Plan strongly align with the six principles of the National School Food Program:

Table 4: National School Food Policy principles table
Initiative Description Principles
Pay-What-You-Can (PWYC) payment model The PWYC payment model allows parents of school-aged children to adjust their payment based on the resources that they have available, including receiving meals at no cost. All school-aged children attending public schools in PEI can access this program.
  • Accessible
  • Inclusive
  • Flexible
Universal access in provincial public schools PEISFP is currently available in all public schools in PEI, with the exception of John J. Sark School. This school receives provincial funding to operate a culturally appropriate school food programming that incorporates Indigenous foods and teachings.
  • Accessible
  • Inclusive
Food literacy initiatives PEISFP will engage in activities that promote food literacy awareness amongst diners. This includes opportunities to expand educational initiatives in conjunction with expanding the variety of vegetables and nutritious options visible among meal options. This is outlined in the current strategic plan for PEISFP Inc. John J. Sark School continues to implement food literacy initiatives tied to Indigenous culture. This includes integrating menu items with cultural significance including educating students on the significance of the food components.
  • Health Promoting
  • Inclusive
School food nutrition policies In August 2024, the Auditor General released the Healthiness of Food in Schools report, which reviewed PEI school food initiatives. The PEISFP was found to be in full compliance with school nutrition policies. Funding under this agreement will be used to support EEY hiring a full-time policy position to support reviewing, updating, and implementing a comprehensive school food nutrition policy for the province. This work is a direct result of the recommendations in the Auditor General report. Additionally, PEISFP has a chef that is continuously working on quality assurance and menu development.
  • Health Promoting
  • Sustainable
  • Accountable
Meeting dietary needs PEISFP offers daily vegetarian and gluten-friendly options. As a direct result of diner feedback, PEISFP now offers a three-week menu rotation to ensure a balance of consistency and variety.
  • Accessible
  • Health promoting
  • Inclusive
  • Flexible
Local food sourcing All school lunch programs continue to access local food resources where possible. John J. Sark Memorial School uses fresh food from local fishers, harvests produce from their own garden, and uses local meat producers to supply ingredients for their program. In the current PEISFP Inc. strategic plan, the organization identified the need to explore opportunities for greater use of locally sourced foods.
  • Flexible
  • Sustainable
Quality assurance PEISFP has a staff member dedicated to ensuring quality and consistency in the meals being served to diners. This includes regularly surveying school staff and diners for feedback, randomized meal audits, and menu testing and development. As outlined in their current strategic plan, PEISFP Inc. will continue to develop a progressive quality assurance program.
  • Health promoting
  • Accountable
Long-term funding The Government of PEI and PEISFP have a long-term funding agreement in place. This provides stability within school food programming and allows for more long-term planning and stability for employees involved in the organization.
  • Sustainable
  • Accountable
Breakfast and snack program The Government of PEI provides dedicated funding to all publicly funded schools in the province, allowing administrators to work with local home and school officials to best address the needs within each individual school given all available capacity and resources.
  • Accessible
  • Health promoting
  • Flexible

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2026-06-16