School food policies

GERMANY

• Two German regional governments, Berlin and Saarland, have implemented the German Nutrition Society (DGE) voluntary quality standards for school food in local law, requiring, among others, that schools provide water and unsweetened herbal drinks or fruit teas.

FRANCE

• Water must be provided with school meals.
• Vending machines containing drinks and snacks are not allowed in schools; bottled water must be made available.

LITHUANIA

• Food- and nutrient-based standards exist for lunches in pre-schools, secondary schools, and children’s social care institutions; drinking water must be provided and soft drinks are prohibited.

ROMANIA

• Soft drinks are prohibited and drinking water must be accessible in schools and pre-schools.

AUSTRIA

• 'Our school cafeteria' is a voluntary programme; cafeterias adhering to it must provide water and ensure that 80% of sold beverages do not contain sweeteners and more than 7.4 g of sugar per 100 ml.

SWEDEN

• Drinks available in primary schools, secondary schools, and youth recreation centres are limited to water and milk.

AUSTRALIA

• 'The 2015 ACT School Food and Drink Policy…is working to ensure water is the easiest choice available, including the installation of two water refill stations in each public school'
• Only plain and unsweetened water and/or 100% fruit juice is allowed in school vending machines and cafeterias.

BAHRAIN

• The Ministry of Health has a mandatory list of permitted drinks for public elementary and secondary schools which only allows unsweetened 100% fruit juice, water, milk, and milk drinks.

US ( HHFKA 2006 (pdf), USDA 2016 )

• The Healthy Hunger Free Kids Act sets standards for national school lunch and breakfast programmes, which include limits on added sugars in foods and beverages. Beverages are restricted to water and low-fat or non-fat milk.

Public health campaign

HUNGARY

• The Hungarian Aqua Promoting Programme in the Young (HAPPY) makes free water available on school premises.

Public institution food provision

UNITED KINGDOM

• Scottish government guidelines for NHS hospital settings mandate that, among others, water is prominently positioned in vending machines.

UNITED STATES

• New York City Food Standards require that all foods purchased or served by city agencies, including prisons, hospitals, and senior care centres, include, among others, a free offer of water with food.

School initiative

• 'Crunch & Sip' programme promotes water consumption, which involves students bringing water from home. Each child has a small clear bottle of water in the classroom to drink through the day to prevent dehydration.

Private Public Partnerships

• Voluntary participation of restaurants in a Los Angeles County department of health initiative. Participating restaurants must offer, among others, free chilled water.

Workplace policies

• WorkWell is a workplace wellbeing public health initiative that aims to increase productivity by improving the wellbeing of employees in New Zealand. The toolkit for healthy eating policy for the companies includes providing free drinking water.