Woonona East Public School students also can’t get enough of the “special food days” run by The Wellness Hut canteen manager Jaclyn Richardson.

In fact acting school principal Bernadette Stephens reckons Mrs Richardson played a big part in Woonona East becoming the first Illawarra school to meet the new NSW Healthy School Canteen Strategy.

The Illawarra Shoalhaven Health District has also helped the school make fresh healthy food an easy choice for students.

“Students are trying a much wider variety of healthy foods, particularly fruits and vegetables, and they are learning healthy eating habits,” Mrs Stephens said.

“The healthier options also mean that students are coming into class after breaks times, well nourished, more settled and with better concentration.”

Mrs Richardson added there was an initial concern but the canteen was now providing a variety of healthy and tasty menu choices for students.

“We went for the early approach knowing that change can take time,” she said.

“We started by removing items which didn’t meet the criteria, and trialling new items which did.

“The majority of food items on the canteen menu are now made fresh on site and we are seeing a positive shift in the attitude towards eating healthy food.”

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The revised strategy is led by the Department of Education in partnership with NSW Health.

All NSW public schools are required to implement the new food and drink benchmark by the end of 2019.

To meet the benchmark, a school’s menu must consist of at least 75 per cent everyday food and drinks such as breads, fruit, vegetables, dairy products and lean meets that are not crumbed or fried and no more than 25 per cent occasional items which have a minimum 3.5 health star rating.