Home > Eat Right School-Transforming India’s Health through Youth Education

The Eat Right School program is an interactive learning initiative launched by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) in 2017 to transform India’s food safety and nutrition landscape. The program focuses on school children because food habits are developed early in life, and children are viewed as powerful “change agents” who can influence their families and communities to adopt a culture of safe and wholesome food.

Core Objectives and Rationale:

The program was established to address India’s “triple burden” of undernutrition, micronutrient deficiencies, and rising overweight or obesity. By integrating food safety and nutrition into the school curriculum and extracurricular activities, the initiative aims to:

• Inculcate healthy eating habits and hygiene practices.
• Create awareness about food safety and nutrition among students and teachers.
• Ensure the availability and consumption of safe and sustainable diets.

Key Components and Learning Materials:

The FSSAI has developed a rich repository of age-appropriate content created by domain experts to be absorbed into school curricula:

• The Yellow Books: These are graded volumes (Level 1 for grades 1-5, Level 2 for grades 6-8) available in 11 regional languages that teach right eating habits through scientific and credible content.
• Activity Books: Fun-filled books designed to reinforce messages about safe and nutritious food through activities.
• Teacher Training Manuals: Developed to provide an in-depth understanding of food safety and nutrition for teachers and Health and Wellness Ambassadors (HWA).
• DART Book and Magic Box: The Detecting Adulterants with Rapid Testing (DART) Book and the Food Safety Magic Box contain over 100 easy experiments to check for food adulteration using materials readily available in classrooms or homes.

Implementation and Engagement:

Schools implement the program through a structured five-step process using a comprehensive online portal for registration and tracking:

1. School Registration: Schools register online to gain access to resources.
2. Health and Wellness Ambassadors (HWA): Teachers or parents are nominated and certified by FSSAI to drive safe food initiatives within the school.
3. Eat Right Activities: Schools conduct interactive sessions, quizzes, and use educational videos featuring celebrities to engage students.
4. Eat Right Creativity Challenge (ERCC): This national competition encourages students to showcase their understanding of healthy habits through poster making, photography, rangoli, and bulletin board decoration.
5. Eat Right Matrix and Certification: This is a self-compliance monitoring tool where schools are awarded certificates based on their performance in implementing Eat Right activities and adhering to food safety standards.

Impact and Regulations:

A large-scale study involving over 34,000 students demonstrated that the program’s nutritional education interventions led to a significant shift (an increase of 21.5% to 32.2%) in students’ knowledge regarding iron, its sources, and the prevention of anaemia. Furthermore, to support these efforts, FSSAI introduced a regulation in 2020 that prohibits the sale or marketing of junk food (foods high in fat, salt, and sugar) within 50 metres of school gates.

As of recent reports, over 53,000 schools have registered for the program, and approximately 50,000 activities have been conducted nationwide.

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