Understanding nutrition empowers people to question misinformation, demand fair access to healthy food, and make informed decisions to protect their health and the environment. Cutting a subject that provides that is short-sighted.

The smell of freshly baked muffins in a classroom isn’t just about food – it’s about learning, nutrition, applied science, consumer studies, critical thinking, literacy and practical skills that prepare learners for lifelong success.  

Serving as a foundational pathway, home economics (food and nutrition) has been part of New Zealand’s education system since 1911. It has evolved into a rigorous, interdisciplinary field, and it is an academic pathway recognised through university degrees, doctorates and postgraduate research. Additionally, home economics (food and nutrition) is currently an NCEA scholarship subject. Yet now, minister of education Erica Stanford, plans to remove this vital subject from our school subject list. 

Stanford claims that consultation is ongoing. It isn’t. Teachers, parents, students and professional associations have had no voice in this process. 

The minister of education is fragmenting what was home economics (food and nutrition), placing it under hospitality. But the subject is different from developing food products and catering (hospitality) for events. The academic home economics (food and nutrition) pathway focused on wellbeing does not align with a vocational food pathway for learning to prepare food for a cafe. 

At a time when families are busier and more and more of them rely on processed and/or takeaway foods, along with growing physical and mental health issues, lifestyle diseases, food insecurity and the corporatisation of food advertising, cutting home economics (food and nutrition) is short-sighted. What message are we sending to our young people, to society? That understanding nutrition doesn’t matter? Can wellbeing be sacrificed for “efficiency” to align with the minister of education’s ideology?

Findings from a 2023 University of Otago study show that consuming more vegetables (75g or ½ to 1 cup) daily would save the New Zealand health system just over NZ$830 million over the lifespan of the population – an economic, learning and health benefit.

Home economics (food and nutrition) connects deeply with who we are as a nation. It embodies the values of manaakitanga and kaitiakitanga – caring for others and our environment.  Everyone deserves to know what’s in their food, how it affects their health, and how to make choices that support their overall wellbeing. Understanding nutrition empowers people to question misinformation, demand fair access to healthy food, and make informed decisions that protect both their health and the environment. Removing home economics (food and nutrition) would sever these ties, undermining our holistic approach, a feature of education in New Zealand.

Food education is an equaliser. Not every child learns to cook or eat well at home. School-based food education provides that lifeline – teaching students how to plan, budget and cook in a world flooded with fast food and misinformation. It empowers future doctors, nurses, health and community services professionals, teachers, engineers, scientists, tourism and food production industry professionals and many other careers, as well as parents.

Good food and nutrition, health and wellbeing are critical for community resilience. Globally, education systems are expanding food and nutrition learning, not removing it. The International Federation for Home Economics (IFHE) identifies it as central to sustainability and wellbeing. Unesco’s 2025 report, Education and Nutrition: Learn to Eat Well, shows that nourished students achieve better outcomes and that nourished citizens build stronger nations.

Minister Stanford, this is not just a bureaucratic adjustment – it’s a moral decision. Food is the foundation of life, learning and health. Removing food and nutrition from the curriculum will cost New Zealand far more than it could ever save. 

There has been no revelation of the procedures followed by the minister herself or the Ministry of Education. The silence appears to be strategic.

Home economics (food and nutrition) lessons don’t just build knowledge. In the words of a student, “It has been a journey filled with laughter, teamwork and lessons learned through experience. It has shown me that food is not only about eating but about creating, sharing, learning about nutrition and connecting with others.”