Primary school food education policy worldwide: a scoping review

Purpose This study establishes the extent and nature of international literature about primary school food education. It investigates what type of policies are analysed, which methods are used, what policy recommendations were made and what gaps exist in research. Design/methodology/approach A scoping review method was used to analyse the policy aspect of primary school food education original research papers. Searches were conducted in a range of interdisciplinary databases including Academic Search Ultimate, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL) Ultimate, Health Policy Reference Centre, Medline Complete, Political Science Complete, Sociology Source Ultimate, Education Resources Information Center, Scopus, Social Policy and Practice and Web of science. Findings A total of 14 papers met inclusion criteria. Studies were published between 2011 and 2024, focused on national and state curriculum policy, and used content analysis methods. Recommendations called for more joined-up, cohesive policymaking across government and curriculum improvements. Extensive research gaps were identified, including varied food education policy approaches from different countries and examination of the food education policy environment. Research limitations/implications The systematic nature of scoping reviews, including papers only in the English language and excluding grey literature, limits the scope of research included in this review. Meanwhile, data were of variable quality, and some papers did not specify which policies were analysed, which led to data collection challenges. Originality/value Research into the policy aspect of primary school food education is scarce. This scoping review adds to the knowledge base, by establishing the features of research to date in this field.