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Universal Welfare May Be Costly: Evidence from School Meal Programs and Student Fitness in South Korea

descriptionPublicationkeyboard_double_arrow_right Article , Journal , Other literature type 01 Mar 2019Publisher:MDPI AGJournal:Sustainability, volume 11, page 1,290 (eissn: 2071-1050,

Authors: Deokrye Baek; Yongjun Choi; Hong Lee;

doi: 10.3390/su11051290

Universal Welfare May Be Costly: Evidence from School Meal Programs and Student Fitness in South Korea

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Abstract

The Free School Meal Program (FSMP) initiated in 2011 in South Korea allows participating schools to provide free lunches to all students regardless of their household income. This paper examines how universal free school meal programs are associated with student health outcomes. We empirically show that FSMP reduces the share of students with high fitness grades by up to 1.5% of the student population. We also find that expenses for physical education decrease in schools that adopt FSMP. These results suggest that FSMP could crowd out investments in student physical activities, and student fitness could be negatively impacted. The paper sheds light on the importance of budgetary balance between universal welfare programs and other educational programs.

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Keywords

Environmental effects of industries and plants, school meal program, TJ807-830, TD194-195, Renewable energy sources, Environmental sciences, school budget, universal welfare, educational funds, physical fitness, GE1-350

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