A cross-sectional study of nutrition policy, food quality and hygiene in Pune city school canteens: a call for policy reinforcement and quality improvement

The school food environment plays a significant role in children’s nutritional well-being. The widespread accessibility and availability of unhealthy foods in school canteens demand urgent attention. The study aimed to evaluate the school nutrition policies implemented in private secondary schools in Pune city, to examine the knowledge, attitudes, and practices of food handlers in ensuring the delivery of safe and nutritious meals to schoolchildren, and to compare the availability of food high in fat, salt, and sugar (HFSS) in school canteens across various cities in India. A cross-sectional study was conducted to collect data from 32 private secondary schools in Pune city regarding the implementation of any school nutrition policy and types of food offered through school canteens. All available food handlers (n = 64) were recruited for the study. Only 42% of the food handlers were aware of Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) guidelines; about 54.7% were able to discern nutritious foods from the canteen menus and half the school canteens had poor hygiene status. Most of the food handlers lacked formal training in food safety. Approximately 40.6% of schools partially adhered to FSSAI nutrition guidelines; none implemented a nutrition and health-promoting curriculum and 18.75% of schools featured menus with ≥ 80% healthy foods. The prevalence of high fat, sugar, and salt foods in the school canteens aligned with findings from other Indian cities. The study findings underscore training of food handlers, compliance with food safety and nutrition guidelines, regulatory supervision, and community engagement to improve the nutritional quality and food safety in school canteens.