The impact of short‐term food regulations in New Zealand schools

Abstract

Purpose

In New Zealand, legislation was introduced to regulate the types of food sold and promoted in schools but 15 months later, part of the legislation was repealed. The purpose of this paper is to determine the extent to which a sample of schools implemented positive changes when the legislation was introduced and the extent to which they reversed the changes when the second clause was repealed.

Design/methodology/approach

An anonymous survey containing qualitative and quantitative aspects was mailed to a randomly selected sample of 1,000 New Zealand primary and secondary schools. A respondent from each school was asked questions about health issues, including whether their school had implemented changes when the new legislation was introduced and whether they reversed or modified those changes when part of it was repealed 15 months later. Simple preliminary analyses are presented in this paper.

Findings

Responses were received from 318 schools (32 percent): 66 percent of respondents made changes, 5 percent did not, and 11 percent reported that the changes had not been applicable to their school. A further 18 percent did not need to make changes, as they already complied with legislative requirements. Only three schools completely reversed their changes after repeal of part of the legislation and 29 other schools made minor changes.

Originality/value

The results of this small study suggest that even short‐lived regulations have the potential to make a significant and long‐term difference, especially when accompanied by substantial funding and comprehensive professional development.

Citation

Cushman, P. (2012), "The impact of short‐term food regulations in New Zealand schools", Health Education, Vol. 112 No. 6, pp. 485-496. https://doi.org/10.1108/09654281211275836