Healthy eating in schools: guidance 2020

Annex B: General guidance on consideration of the role food plays in our cultural traditions, religious beliefs and faiths.

Our cultural traditions, religious beliefs and faiths can have a significant impact on the kind of food we eat, how it is prepared and even how or when it is eaten. Many faith and belief communities provide guidance on what is considered appropriate to eat in order to demonstrate and practice their faith or belief and each culture will have its own recipes, traditions and ways of cooking food.

Many schools in Scotland have a diverse population and this can provide excellent opportunities for including new foods, cooking methods and recipes in school menus. To maximise on those opportunities, local authorities may wish to work with their school communities to include a statement within their school food policy that reflects the diversity of their particular school population. Doing so can promote inclusion and may encourage more children and young people to take school lunches particularly if they can recognise their own cultures, foods and traditions in the school food policy and menus.