WITH statistics showing an alarming increase in child obesity across the island, Jamaica’s health and education authorities are making urgent moves to address the issue, with major revision of existing meal manuals to ensure compliance with the National School Nutrition Policy.

State minister of the Ministry of Health and Wellness Krystal Lee, addressing the launch of a mass media campaign of the National School Nutrition Policy, at the Terra Nova All-Suite Hotel in St Andrew on Thursday, said that the revision being carried out in collaboration with the Ministry of Education and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) will ensure that all school recipes meet the national nutrition standards.

According to Lee, the National School Nutrition Policy is a channel through which the Government and its collaborators can tackle the problem of obesity among children by increasing physical activity, replacing less nutritious foods with healthy options, providing a balanced diet, reducing excess fats, sugars and salts, and addressing the marketing of unhealthy foods to children at schools.

“The ministry will be collaborating with the Ministry of Education, Skills, Youth and Information, and UNICEF to revise existing recipe manuals to ensure they are compliant to the national school nutrition standards. The revision process is set to begin this month, October 2025,” said Lee.

She added that after the revision process was complete, “The initial testing of recipes is planned for December 2025, and then taste testing by students is being planned for next year, January 2026. Lab testing for nutrients of concern will be done by February 2026, and the recipes finalised by the end of March 2026,” added Lee as she argued that what is being done is the blueprint for a healthier and more productive Jamaica.

The implementation of the nutrition policy comes as statistics from the Heart Foundation of Jamaica show that more than 77 per cent of the nation’s deaths are as a result of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) including diabetes, heart disease and stroke.

The trend has also trickled into the lives of the nation’s children with more than 23 per cent of minors aged 13-17 years being overweight or obese, as a result of poor dietary choices, leaving them prone to developing NCDs later on in their lives.

“We have already undertaken an assessment of healthy eating environment in schools, with a view to determining the readiness for the implementation of this policy. More than 200 schools have been assessed, with a focus in food safety, hygiene, training, nutritional quality, and overall administrative practices,” said Lee as she called for collaboration between the Government, educators, and families, to create a culture of health.

“When our children are healthy, they learn better, dream bigger, and continue to be more meaningful to society. The implementation of this policy must signal the beginning of a cultural shift, where every school becomes an oasis of wellness and every child empowered to thrive. Let us move forward together with urgency, with unity, and with unwavering resolve for the best health outcome for our young people,” she concluded.