Minister for Social Protection Dara Calleary has said a number of changes are on the way to the free hot school meal programme, including the possible introduction of cold lunches.
Speaking at a press conference, he said that overall the scheme is "very successful" but said there would now be a shift at improving the nutritional value of what is on offer.
The Cabinet discussed proposals to overhaul the free hot school meals programme after two Government-commissioned reviews revealed shortcomings in the service.
Mr Calleary sought Cabinet approval for a number of changes to the scheme, after it was discovered that roughly a fifth of all hot school meals - or around 100,000 a day - go uneaten.
When accounting for absences, the proportion of uneaten meals is 11.1%.
Around half a million hot school meals are delivered to primary schools across the country daily, with the scheme extended nationwide in September 2025 to benefit 3,200 schools and more than 550,000 children.
Mr Calleary said there would also be a move to change portion sizes for the different age groups, and said that adaptions would be made for those in special schools to increase inclusivity.
The minister also signalled the introduction of a "three-week standardised menu cycle" and said the introduction of a cold meal option, as suggested by parents, would also be looked at.
He said discussion would now take place with the schools and the providers with a view to the changes taking effect in the 2027/28 cycle.
The minister said he was happy at the rate of expansion of the scheme since its introduction, but said the focus would now move to the quality of the food on offer.
He said for a family of four, it can save them ''considerable amount of money" - around €1,100 a year.
He acknowledged too that food waste was a challenge that his Department was taking seriously, but said some of that could be put down to student absences.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin has acknowledged the amount of waste from the hot school meals scheme and said there will be government discussions around the "best way forward."
Speaking on his way into today's Cabinet meeting Mr Martin said there is "room for improvement" for the quality of the food and more must be done to reduce food waste.
Mr Martin said this scheme was ramped up quickly there have been many "positive benefits" with children now getting a nutritious meal regularly.
Mícheál Lehane details Govt hopes for hot school meal scheme
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But following the two reviews, Mr Martin agreed that significant improvements must be made.
Social Democrats TD Jen Cummins has again called for nutritional standards for school meals on a statutory footing.
Concerns around quality
The €300 million scheme has faced some criticism, with the Oireachtas Committee on Education hearing concerns earlier this year around the nutritional quality of meals, including the level of highly processed foods and the lack of transparency regarding production methods.
After conducting a detailed audit and review of school meals in schools, a Government-appointed nutritionist concluded that it was "evident that high fat, salt and sugar foods are chosen over healthier options when available on the menu".
The expert also expressed concern about portion size - noting how the same portion size is served to all students, with the knock-on effect of calorie content being low for older children.
The average percentage of children ordering a meal was 85%.
It was higher among children from Junior Infants to First class at 97%, compared to 81% in Fifth and Sixth class.
The Nutrition Review analysed 360 meals from 15 suppliers and included 54 school visits across Ireland.
Mr Calleary also tasked IPSOS/Behaviour & Attitudes to carry out a detailed survey of pupils, parents and school teachers to assess their views on the scheme, with 747 schools, 6,884 children, 86,637 parents and guardians, 2,420 teachers and principals, and 47 suppliers all offering their opinion.
Three quarters of children stated that they eat all, most, or some of their meal, while 63% of teachers and principals believe the hot school meals scheme has had a generally positive impact.
The survey also identified how food waste was a problem before the introduction of school meals, with almost half of parents saying their children brought uneaten food home before free school meals were introduced.
84% of parents felt children should have the option of a cold lunch while many also had issues with dietary requirements and overall menu choice.
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Options may reduce food waste
The review recommends the development of a standardised menu cycle as well as different sized meals for different age groups.
It also states that menus be adapted for special schools and special classes, and for children with special dietary requirements to ensure the scheme remains inclusive.
Children should also have the option of a cold or hot lunch on any given day, and this may contribute to waste reduction, the report states.
The provision of hot school meals is regarded a cost-of-living measure and is estimated to save a family with two primary school children approximately €1,152 per year.
The Programme for Government commits to extending the scheme to secondary schools in Ireland "over the lifetime of this Government" but Mr Calleary has not set a timeline for the expansion as of yet.
Decreasing number of students eating meals
The principal of a national school in Dublin said there has been a big drop off on the number of children eating the meals.
Shane Loftus, principal of Our Lady Immaculate Senior National School in Darndale, said his school was very supportive of the hot meals programme initially.
Speaking on RTÉ's Morning Ireland, he said: "Over the last couple of years we'd have seen a big downturn in the number of children who are actually eating the meals, which means that there's a lot more waste now than we would have seen in the past.
"We know that the children will sometimes have a different lunch with them, but in most cases [they] will have no lunch at all with them and will go hungry rather than eat some of the meals."
Mr Loftus said children should have the option of a roll or sandwich and not just the hot meal every day.
"If there was even an opportunity for people to take home some of the hot meals to be reheated or whatever... it does seem to be a big flaw in the system that if it's not eaten within the hour, hour-and-a-half, then it can't be eaten and has to be destroyed", he added.
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The CEO of Food Policy Ireland said the hot meals programme has found that around 6.3 million kilogrammes of food is wasted over a school year.
Ruth Hegarty said it is not clear how the figure that almost 19% of food is going uneaten was arrived at, as "there's been no actual food waste audits carried out in schools".
She said it is likely that there will be some tweaks made to the current model, and it will continue to embed in the system.
Ms Hegarty said that international best practice is "to serve meals in school, to have a very limited choice, but to have rotating menus where children are exposed to a variety of foods over a period of time".
She said the nutritional value and the quality of the food is framed very narrowly, "so, the focus for the department has been on eliminating high fat, salt and sugar foods".
"But we also know that the meals are very low in fruit and vegetable content, which is really what Irish children desperately need", Ms Hegarty added.
