I'm from the US but live in Finland and raising two children here. Have to say I've taken it a bit for granted how nice it is that my kids (and all other Finnish kids) are fed warm nutritious lunches every day at school. I truly wasn't aware not all Nordic countries did this until recently after watching this video. In the video, several Americans try school lunches from various countries such as England, Ukraine, Italy, Norway, Germany, Spain.
No Finland, but it was surprising to see what the typical Norwegian school lunch (cold sandwich, brought from home) looks like compared to the other countries' lunches. The folks in the video liked the matpakke sandwich, but I'd like to see their reaction after eating the same type of cold sandwich every day for lunch for a few weeks. And, for the parents, what a hassle to have to pack a lunch everyday, and on top of that, having to worry about making it nutritious and not too monotonous. My kids' school cafeteria rotates through about two dozen or so dishes and even if many dishes are fairly basic, there's always enough variety to keep it interesting. Their favorites are lasagnette, curry chicken sauce with pasta, siskonmakarakeitto and kasvissosekeitto. Always with salad/veggies on the side, buttered rye bread or crackers, and milk/water. Sometimes cottage cheese or carrot sticks. On soup days you get dessert, like a whole piece of fruit, a little cake, or pudding/rahka. Every Sunday night before bed my kids insist we look up the lunch menu for the week so they know what they're having — it just seems like school lunch is such an integral part of the Finnish schoolkid experience, and I think that's really wholesome and nice.
When I researched this topic online after watching the video, I came across this discussion where, in answer to the question "Why don't Norwegian schools serve lunch?", one answer was:
The “matpakke” (food package) or “niste” is deeply embedded in our culture. We find it more practical and efficient to make our food beforehand, then eat it when we feel hungry. Many offices have cafeterias though, where you can buy food. Also, we don't regard it a public responsibility to ensure that our pupils are properly fed. This is the parents task. In cases where the parents don't take this seriously, the teacher must tell the parents to straighten up.
I don't know how representative that answer is, but if it's accurate, this mentality strikes me as so oddly individualistic…even a bit American? I don't know, I just find it such a weird way of looking at it, especially after having gotten used to the Finnish system. I love how Finland takes care of its children and emphasizes their well-being on a societal and state level. It just really makes me proud even though I'm not Finnish.
by girlatcomputer
4 comments
Am new here
As a parent I wholeheartedly agree! The topic of school lunches is so common on the parenting subreddit and I think the American parents are pretty talented on what to pack for the kids to school- I’ve sometimes commented that I’d consider it super difficult to come up with something to pack for my kids on a daily basis. It’s super convenient to not have to think about it at all! My kids also eat the lunch every day, although they are around the age now when many kids sneak off to the nearest grocery store for the croissants and such. Fingers crossed they’ll stick with the lunch at school..
Also the daycares, my 2 little ones in daycare in Turku eating healthier than me. I moved 7 years ago to Finland from US and I got the same lunch everyday: P&J sandwich, chips, carrots and a Capri Sun.
A couple years ago I started to complain to my husband that the kids eat too much sausages, maksalaatikko and pasta at the daycare, but quickly had to shut up when I remembered how it is in other countries. We are very rural so the kids don’t get as much fresh salad as they should but it’s still amazing!