In recent weeks, lunches have turned into a political hot potato for some state-run schools where administrators are accused of cutting costs by serving up meagre meals, which critics say rob young students of the nutrition they need to perform. Parents have complained that some schools in the Northeast have skimped on ingredients and reduced the sizes of the portions served at canteens, possibly skimming off student lunch finding for use elsewhere.
A sign announces the Tambon Ngim Municipality School in the remote tambon Ngim of Pong district, Phayao. The school may be 200km from the centre of the province, but it is where a model lunch programme for schools can be found. Photos by Saiarun Pinaduang
But in Phayao, one school is setting an good example by showing how 20 baht -- provided in the form of a state subsidy -- can be used to give a child healthy and tasty lunch.
Tambon Ngim Municipality School in remote tambon Ngim of Pong district is a three-hour drive from downtown Phayao. It is a primary school, kindergarten and nursery all rolled into one with 352 students, 164 of whom are in primary-level classes, 126 in kindergarten and the rest in the nursery.
Somwang Kamtan, mayor of Tambon Ngim municipality, which oversees the school lunch programme in the tambon, said his office makes it a point to strictly follow the Department of Local Administration's (DLA) directive on full, nutritious food to be consumed by school children.
The Tambon Ngim Municipality School has been a model for cooking and serving children's meals, striving for the right dietary balance of the essential five food groups.
The school receives a 20 baht a day budget per child from the local administrative organisation to prepare lunches and has to stretch the money as far as it can.
The funding may look meagre but the school has found ways to make the most of it. The basic ingredients are mostly sourced locally at low prices while the lunch budget spending is governed by strict regulations.
Mr Somwang said he has assigned his deputy, Kanyanat Srijai, to handle the lunch programme. Well-versed in basic health and nutritional issues, she has organised several health promotion campaigns for the municipality.
Ms Kanyanat said the municipality hired locals to shop for clean, fresh and low-priced ingredients for the students' lunches.
The municipality preferred to buy vegetables and produce from local suppliers to save on transport costs, she said. At the school, teachers in charge of the programme meet to draw up a lunch menu, which consists of a main course and sweets or fruit.
The menus would be submitted to the municipality's public health division for approval. Once approved, the menus would be handed to the cooks who prepare the dishes accordingly. Teachers take photos as the meals are prepared until the meals are presented to the students.
The pictures are regularly sent to school executives and the municipality for review, she said. The review committee decides if the students are eating well enough, and can ask for more servings if they wish.
Lunch quality is assessed every month, she said. The municipality requests students and their parents to provide feedback on the lunch programme, which forms part of the evaluation criteria for municipality officials connected to the scheme and the school cooks.
If the lunch is determined to fall below standard in any area, the municipality needs to fix it immediately, she said.
"The cooks are also evaluated. If they put out out dishes that lack nutrition or taste, the municipal office will stop hiring them," Ms Kanyanat said.
The school opens a group chat room on the Line application for each class. Chat members include parents who are updated on what their children had for lunch that day.
Ms Kanyanat said lunch expenses at the school come to 140,800 baht a month. The calculation is based on an average 20 school days in a month.
The municipality has secured regular supplies of raw ingredients from local farmers who are members of the so-called "9101" project which works to support sustainable agricultural development in honour of the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej. The supplies include the eggs and chemical-free vegetables grown in the tambon.
Farmers whose produce is used for school meals earn a steady income from the sale of the vegetables and fruit. The lunch programme is a contributor to the local economy, Ms Kanyanat said.
The school director, Nares Apailun, said students are served egg-based dishes three days a week. Eggs are an affordable source of protein and other essential nutrition which nourish the children and promote their physical and mental development.
However, the menus often change so children have something new to look forward to, and help work up their appetite.
"The school is aware that when the children have full tummies and are eating quality food, they will grow up healthy in mind and body," Mr Nares said.
The school also designs a special menu for obese students while making sure the dishes contain low sugar and salt levels and are mild enough to be consumed by the youngsters.
School director, Nares Apailun: 'The children need nourishment to promote their physical and mental development.'
The school director added fizzy drinks and sweet beverages are banned in the school.
The school has been recognised for its lunch programme, having been awarded a gold medal for its health promotion efforts by the Public Health Ministry in 2015. It also received a diamond medal in 2016 and the super diamond medal last year.
Suttipong Juljarern, director-general of the DLA, said the department disburses the lunch budget for schools supervised by the local administrative organisations (LAOs) and those attached to other state agencies.
He says the aims are to plan the budget in advance, keep track of expenses, and ensure the children are well-fed.
The LAO-run schools must deposit the lunch budget in their bank accounts. They can withdraw the money only for school lunch programmes and every baht has to be recorded in the accounts.
Mr Suttipong said his agency has set out clear guidelines, including that the LAOs must allocate the budget to schools within seven days of receiving it from the government. Speed is key as schools need cash every school day for cooking the lunches.
The LAOs are duty-bound to audit the financial records and procurement projects of the schools in their jurisdictions.
They are told to consider using an online programme, called "Thai School Lunch" (TSL), which can help teachers arrange menus including essential nutrients and suiting the context of each school.
The programme was jointly developed by Mahidol University's Institute of Nutrition and the National Electronics and Computer Technology Centre.
Meanwhile, residents are also encouraged to join efforts to counter graft in the school lunch programme, according to Mr Suttipong. Lunch menus and details of key ingredients are posted on school notice boards.
LAO executives were also instructed to examine the procurement process to make sure it adheres to the regulations, he said.
Working teams are regularly deployed to check the procurement process while individuals on the panels keeping an eye on school lunches from suppliers will always rotate.
Sanga Damapong, adviser to the Department of Health, said the aim of school meals is not just to make sure students are full. They must also include essential nutrients. A good-quality lunch would help boost learning outcomes among students, he said.
Uraiporn Chittchang, a nutrition academic at the Institute of Nutrition, also backed the use of the TSL and another programme, "Inmu-School Lunch", which she said helps ensure the lunches given have essential nutrients.
Both programmes can help teachers check the quality of the meals and make improvements, she said.
Somwang Kamtan: "The Tambon Ngim Municipality School has made the most out of its lunch budget."
Kanyanat Srijai, deputy mayor of Tambon Ngim municipality, says the state budget for spending on the school lunch programme is closely monitored and the expenses must be accountable.
Youngsters tuck into a nutritious and hearty lunch prepared at a cost of 20 baht of state subsidy per student per day.