The government of British Columbia announced the allocation of $214 million over three years to support food programs in school districts throughout the province.

This amount is an extension of the funding announced last August to help families prepare for their children’s return to school amid rising inflation.

The funds will also be spent on purchasing food and hiring specialists to coordinate food programs in the major school districts of Western Canada (4.5 million people).

For his part, the Chair of the Sooke School District, Ravi Parmar, has been calling for years for a national food program for schools.

"This is a great transitional step by the province, in terms of being able to find some certainty during the short upcoming period," Parmar said.

Parmar added that food programs can help put students in a better position to receive education and that he wants British Columbia to push the federal government to establish a national funding model for school food.

As for the Executive Director of the "Single Mothers' Alliance in British Columbia," Vivica Ellis, she welcomed the announcement issued Tuesday by the provincial government but added that funding is needed to create infrastructure in schools to support food programs.

"We talked to some families and others in the system; they have a large school and a small kitchen," Ellis said, adding that "many, many schools do not have a kitchen and outsource."

Ellis also hopes that attention will be given to ensuring programs are properly staffed so that the extra work does not fall on school staff and volunteers.