Chamunorwa Huni, Ni Putu Wulan Purnama Sari, Minh-Phuong Thi Duong, Adrino Mazenda, Davy Budiono, Minh-Hoang Nguyen, Quan-Hoang Vuong
Purpose – The feeding modalities used in school meal programmes – such as breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks and take-home rations – are influenced by various factors, including supply chain constraints and technical challenges in food distribution. The methods of supply sourcing, whether through domestic or foreign food reserves via in-kind donations or purchases, play a critical role in shaping the feeding options provided. Therefore, this study aims to examine the relationship between various supply-sourcing strategies, i.e. domestic and foreign in-kind donations and purchases and the feeding modalities applied in school meal programmes. Design/methodology/approach – The Bayesian Mindsponge Framework, combining the reasoning strengths of Mindsponge Theory and inference advantages of Bayesian analysis, was employed on a dataset of government representatives who manage large-scale school meal programmes across 126 countries. Findings – The findings revealed that sourcing supplies through in-kind donations from neighbouring or distant countries showed a highly reliable negative relationship with the feeding modalities of school meal programmes, while those from the national bodies showed an ambiguous relationship. The purchasing methods – whether domestic or foreign – tended to exhibit positive relationships with feeding modalities, though these relationships were only weakly reliable. Originality/value – The findings reveal substantial room for improvement in the effectiveness of supply purchasing strategies in enhancing school meal programmes’ feeding modalities. Further research is needed to examine the impact of sourcing supplies through domestic in-kind donations on feeding outcomes. Additionally, developing strategic plans to optimize the use of in-kind donations from international organizations is strongly recommended to avoid their negative consequences and further enhance programme effectiveness. © 2025 Emerald Publishing Limited
School of Government, University of the Western Cape, Cape Town, South Africa; Faculty of Nursing, Widya Mandala Surabaya Catholic University, East Java, Indonesia; Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, Ton Duc Thang University, Ho Chi Minh City, Viet Nam; Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences, School of Public Management and Administration, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa; Faculty of Teacher Education, Widya Mandala Surabaya Catholic University, East Java, Indonesia; Centre for Interdisciplinary Social Research, Phenikaa University, Hanoi, Viet Nam; Centre for Interdisciplinary Social Research, Phenikaa University, Hanoi, Viet Nam; University College, Korea University, Seoul, South Korea