Ministers Anton Refalo and Justyne Caruana, together with Parliamentary Secretary Stefan Zrinzo Azzopardi announced the launch of the new school milk scheme covering the 2020-2021 school year with a total budget of € 441,000 co-financed with European funds.
Minister Refalo said that the main aim of the school milk scheme is to raise awareness among school children about the contribution of fresh milk in children’s diets through national campaigns. as a contribution to the fight against obesity. The scheme also had to be changed this year in order to give importance to avoiding school distribution and minimizing the risk of a coronavirus spread. So the government is launching a change in the voucher system. It will also mean that participating children will be receiving twice as many servings of milk as they have in previous years. The ministry is fully committed to our children always consuming the healthy and fresh whether it is milk, vegetables or fruits. It is important that they are always integral to a balanced diet so that we can shape our children and future generations with all that is healthy and fresh.
Minister Justyne Caruana said that an essential part of our children’s education is that the ministry also promotes health protection. They do this not only by teaching in schools but also by promoting good eating and drinking habits so that we can nurture our children to take care of their health. “There has been work between those involved to see how, due to the restrictions brought about by the pandemic, we can start distributing milk to students between the ages of three and eleven,” said Minister Caruana. “This work has led to the launch today of this scheme through which the families of primary school students will be given vouchers through which to obtain fresh milk.” She mentioned that the ministry extends its work not only in the education of subjects but also sees that students are given a holistic education that leads them to be physically strong citizens and as people who tomorrow will be the ones to lead our country.
Parliamentary Secretary Stefan Zrinzo Azzopardi said that Malta’s allocation under this scheme for the 2020/2021 school year was around € 260,000 in European funds. He explained that with the collaboration of various government departments, this scheme will be improving the health of children. Stefan Zrinzo Azzopardi stressed that these funds are being allocated to provide support to achieve the European Union’s goal of promoting a healthier lifestyle for children while encouraging children to be given healthy food. “This scheme is a clear example of how European funds are being invested directly for the benefit of our children to be nurtured into healthier eating habits.”
