School Lunches You've Probably Never Heard About

Here’s what school lunches around the world look like. Meals for kids in different countries are truly amazing and surprising!
Every country has its standards for school meals. Some schools offer convenience food and snacks for lunch, and some cook set meals for students.
What do you think the most popular ingredients of school lunches are? Well, how about octopus, kimchi, or chili?
Are you curious what kids eat in South Korea? What they prefer in Turkey? Some of those lunches are quite unusual. Watch and try to find your childhood meals!

TIMESTAMPS
South Korea 0:41
Japan 1:23
Turkey 1:55
Thailand 2:28
France 2:59
Finland 3:28
Russia 4:08
Hungary 4:34
Israel 4:53
Colombia 5:25
Italy 5:55
Australia 6:37
Chile 7:11

SUMMARY
- The system of planning school meals in South Korea is one of the best in the world. Lunches are served on special trays. The two biggest sections of the tray are usually for soup and rice. Smaller sections are for salads, seafood, veggies, and fruit.
- Japanese school lunches are almost the same as the South Korean ones: hot soup, rice, poultry or fish, salad, and milk. Students are not allowed to bring their food with them until they reach high school.
- It's interesting that, though children in Turkey have 1 hour for lunch, cafeterias are rare in this country. So students either go home for lunch (which might be hard to do if you live on the other side of the town!) or take food from home.
- Students in Thailand don't eat in the canteen, just like their "colleagues" from Japan. They are usually given soup, pork in sweet and sour sauce, rice, and a pudding wrapped in banana leaves.
- Typical lunch served in the west of France looks very healthy. It is fish, spinach, potatoes, cheese, and bread. It is quite big as the French consider lunch the main meal of the day.
- Finland takes school lunches very seriously. Every student is offered snacks during the morning and evening classes, as well as lunch. Children eat their lunches in a canteen where they can choose whatever they want from a large variety of dishes.
- In Russia, students can have free breakfast from 9 a.m. till 12 p.m. Lunches after 12 p.m. are paid. Children sometimes have lunch at home if they live near the school. If it is a school lunch, it is usually soup, fish or meat with a side dish of rice or buckwheat, and compote.
- Hungary is famous for its big portions in restaurants and cafes. Same goes for school lunches. Children have several courses, with, for example, noodle soup, baked beans with chicken, and nuts for dessert.
- Israel schools have the policy of a healthy diet. The government banned fatty and sugary things from school lunches. But the thing is that children mostly bring their meals from home.
- 60-70% of children in Colombia are given free nutritious lunches. Students of state schools eat one hot meal a day. Their typical meal consists of soup, rice or pasta, salad, meat, and fruit juice.
- Before lunch, in the morning, children get snacks (crackers, breadsticks, fresh fruit, or homemade cookies). For lunch they get two courses: a first course is often pasta or rice with seafood or vegetables, a second course - fish, meat, or cheese.
- Authorities in Australia fight against children's obesity. That's why products rich in sugar, salt, and fat are forced out of school menu. But you can find their healthier replacements such as sandwiches, sushi, corn and fruit available at any time.
- Students in Chile have nice and varied lunches. An example can be a meal with rice, beef roll, French fries, salad, avocado, orange juice, and fruit in the sauce for dessert.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Our Social Media:

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
For more videos and articles visit:

[BRIGHTSIDEOFFICIAL]

Hey guys! What does a typical school lunch look like in your country?

[peternguyenloc]

High School in US
Asian students: I bring my own lunch.

[momsaccount]

These places get 1-2 hour lunches, while my school gets 30 minute lunches. :/

[notplzhelp]

0:40 south korea
1:23 japan
1:55 turkey
2:27 thailand
2:58 france
3:28 finland
4:08 russia
4:34 hungary because he's hungry
4:52 israel
5:25 Colombia
5:54 italy
6:37 Australia
7:11 chile

[alienware]

As an Indian, our lunch breaks were one of the most memorable one of school life, we had choice, either to bring food and do the sharing to try new variety or go up to the terrace and in a beautiful open shed covered terrace, eat from canteen with capacity of 150 people.

[insanelyawesam]

Indians who get to taste a variety of meals and snacks from their friends’ lunchboxes, where are you at?! 😂

[graceloveshamsters]

Asians
Breakfast:porridge(boiled rice)..
Lunch:fried rice..
Dinner:rice and veggies..
WE LOVE RICE!!!

[Koroedova]

In Russia kids up to to 7 y.o go to kindergarten where they are given 5-times meal a day. Menu varies every day and is really healthy.
Shool lunch: soups (we have at least 5-7 different kinds of soups), meat/fish/sausage with sides (mash potato, rice, buckwheat, macaroni etc), salad or starter and bread.
Someone doesn't like school meal, but it's really healthy)

[annabellaprovan]

I am Scottish but most of the time I get steak pie, potatoes and apple with milk/water

[naim]

School lunches in America is cardboard and plastic.

[cxei]

Other schools : 1-2 hour lunch time
My school : 5-10 min lunch time ;)

[a.g.o.t.i.]

In UK, the lunchladys make lunch with vegetables, and we can bring our own packet food. But on Fridays you get chips, fish fingers, beans, and some peas, and you can choose ketchup or no ketchup. Also, you get desert

[aaausername]

In Australia, some schools don't even have a "tuck shop" ( I assume they meant canteen). Most bring food from home and most of them are unhealthy. Usually kids have a piece of fruit, some crackers, a sandwich (which is usually vegemite, salad, jam, peanut butter, etc.), and some sugary food, although it varies. Also in most schools kids sit outside on the ground or on benches outside - we don't really have set places to eat. We have a a recess and a lunch and in some primary schools they have a "brain break" where they eat a piece of fruit. It varies depending on what school you go to, but recess usually goes for about 20 mins (it's usually longer in primary school and shorter in high school), and lunch usually goes for 40mins to an hour. By the way, I never seen someone eating corn for lunch, but it is true that often kids will have sushi, sandwiches, and fruit (albeit along with unhealthy snacks).

[alexlazy]

*When your country doesn't even serve food*

[abandonedoldaccount]

Ironic how “Hungary” has large portions

[qdoigzq]

1:12 pumkin potato soup? I thought I lived in South Korea, guess I was wrong. . . . .

[medhaviherath]

In Sri Lanka, we bring food from home. We get 30 mins for the interval. There are also canteens in the school but most of us bring food from our homes. It would mostly be rice and curry, sandwiches, noodles...etc. We eat in our classrooms. We eat fast and play outside (All within 30 mins) Of course i never make it. And... only primary students get to play... We somehow manage to spare a few mins to chat with each other. :) We also sometimes share our food with friends (hygienically) when we get something special like desserts. Some of us, pack some extra dessert so we can share with friends. But we don't share during the pandemic situations. In case we forgot to bring our lunch boxes we buy some food from the canteens. (but canteens are closed in the pandemic times, so we always check for our meals twice before leaving home)

[gamergod]

South Korea: Rice, Seafood, soup, etc.


North Korea: WW2 rations

[rahulsredkar]

We indians have a legendary tiffin filled with cold stone maggi😂😂😂

[lianaardani]

In the Philippines, we never get school lunches but when I migrated to Poland we eventually got what i always wanted a school lunch