Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Irish Country Living has found that traceability of the food can be poor and that ingredients are often just listed as "pasta sauce" on the website. This has been widely reported in the media. We also know that the same amount of funding, €3.20 per meal, and the same portion sizes are given to children from junior infants right up to sixth class. That should be looked at because children's nutritional needs change and grow as they get older. I am concerned that of the 2,200 schools availing of the scheme, only 400 will be assessed this year. That is a fraction. I absolutely respect the Minister's bona fides and I know that, if he says this will be a priority, it will be but I wonder how that information will get to him. It is not an efficient system for him to wait for complaints to be made. Increasing the number to be assessed is important, as is eliminating the use of catch-all phrases like "pasta sauce". The ingredients should be known. As I have said, for some kids, these meals represent a significant proportion of the food they will eat in any one day.

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