Odessa Plans to Revamp School Meal Program Amid Concerns

During prolonged air raid alerts, Odessa schools may introduce emergency meals instead of hot meals. Most parents supported this approach, provided it keeps children out of harm’s way and allows them to quickly take shelter.

This proposal was discussed at a meeting of the City Council’s Education Committee following an analysis of the results of a large-scale parent survey.

According to Yulia Filler, director of the Odessa City Council’s Department of Education and Science, 46,233 families participated in the survey. The largest number of responses came from parents in the city’s Peresypsky, Kyivsky, Khadzhibey, and Primorsky districts. 

The survey showed that 55.4% of parents consider nutritious hot meals to be very important for their children. They named pasta, mashed potatoes, chicken breast, cutlets, buckwheat, and soups as the most popular dishes. At the same time, fish dishes received the least support.

In addition, parents expressed a desire to make the menu more varied. Among the most frequently mentioned dishes were fruits, vegetables, meat dishes, pizza, cheese pancakes, cheese casseroles, nuggets, and fresh baked goods. They also noted that children often refuse certain fish and dairy dishes, as well as some side dishes.

A separate section of the survey addressed meal arrangements during air raid alerts. Nearly 80% of respondents supported the use of alternative emergency meals if hot meals cannot be served due to a prolonged alert. At the same time, over 92% cited children’s safety and the ability to quickly move to a shelter as a priority.

The Department of Education noted that during martial law, it is becoming increasingly difficult for cooks to prepare both breakfast and lunch simultaneously due to staff shortages, prolonged air raid alerts, and blackouts. That is why one option is to switch to providing students with hot lunches only.

During the meeting, participants also discussed how to avoid food waste in cases where, after meals have been prepared, classes are moved online due to an air raid alert. Schools already use a system to forecast daily attendance, but it is not yet possible to completely rule out such situations.

Following the discussion, the Department of Education plans to prepare recommendations for school administrators before the start of the new school year. In addition, officials do not rule out revising the menu in collaboration with the companies that win the tenders for food services, taking parents’ preferences into account.

Odessa also plans to provide free meals for students in all grades starting September 1, 2026.

Анна Бальчінос