The Dublin based sandwich chain 'Manna' recently launched the lunch ordering service which is web-based and facilitates orders and payments for each school via a dedicated website www.manna.ie/schools.html

Conor Jones from Manna regards the new venture as "a revolution in how our kids are fed at school".

"Originally our service was geared towards our corporate customers who had an obligation to provide staff meals but who did not want to invest in expensive canteen facilities. Our unique approach uses the web to capture individual orders which are compiled onto one lunch list for fulfilment. Thereafter we make, pack, label and deliver all orders from our central kitchen in Sandyford. In a way we have acted as their 'virtual' canteen."

Holy Child School Principal Gerardine Hackett said the service required minimal administration on her part.

"All the lunches arrive properly labelled and sorted by year so they are easy to distribute within the school. Each family manages its own account with Manna via the internet and any difficulties are handled swiftly and efficiently”.

Helen Schuster, Chairperson of Holy Child Parents' Association, was also positive.

"It has been a great success primarily because the food is both tasty and healthy. Parents can organize up to two weeks lunches at one internet session, and they now know for sure how lunch money is being spent!"

According to Manna, this could provide the answer for schools seeking to implement a healthy eating policy - the menu can be tailored to meet each school's requirements and each order is delivered in a pack, labelled with the student's name and year.

The sandwich chain has ambitious expansion plans for the future. These include rolling out the service to other schools in the Dublin area before the end of the year, and licensing its proprietary systems to service providers in other major urban centres.