* Logo design : Nutrition for Learning Waterloo
On Wednesday, October 21, 2026, Vancouver elementary school teacher and LunchLab co-founder Brent Mansfield will once again run 200 laps, this time on the lawn of Parliament in Ottawa, Ontario.
The run will celebrate the establishment of the National School Food Program and draw attention to the Coalition for Healthy School Food’s call for increased federal investment.
Highlights of
the Next Steps for School Food Run
(October 21, 2026)
Next Steps for School Food Run :
Student postcards
Why is
Brent running?
In 2023, Brent ran 200 laps around his Vancouver school, Lord Roberts Elementary School, with students joining him, and later ran 200 laps in Ottawa.
Those runs drew attention to the federal commitment to establish a National School Food Program.
The Program is now in place. Brent’s return to Ottawa marks the next part of the Coalition’s work:
- celebrating the national School Food Program;
- building on that commitment and;
- asking for an additional $200 million dollars so more children and youth can access healthy school food.
Thank you to our partners!
The Coalition for Healthy School Food is organizing the October 21 run in partnership with three Coalition members :
We would like to thank our organizing partners for helping bring the Next Steps for School Food run to life.
Make the next step, together
Ways to take action
There are several ways to support the next stage of school food
in Canada : whether you’re a student sharing your perspective,
joining the event in Ottawa or bringing people together in your community.
Share a postcard
Students and teachers are invited to write postcards to Prime Minister Carney.
Students can share what school food means to them and what they hope to see as programs grow, in their own words.
Post cards can be mailed to:
Ottawa Network for Education
c/o Stephanie Craze
School Breakfast Program
1130 Morrison Drive, Suite 280
Ottawa, ON, K2H PN6
We would like to thank Nutrition for Learning Waterloo for the postcard designs.
Join the Ottawa event
We would be delighted to welcome K–12 students from Ottawa schools to join the run.
Brent will be running from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., and we are inviting students to join him, particularly between noon and 1:30 p.m., when MPs and leaders of all parties have been invited to participate.
Please contact Brent at brentmansfield@gmail.com if your students would like to take part.
Organize an activity locally
We invite schools, Coalition members and endorsers, and families to organize a walk, run or related gathering on October 21 or afterward and use the postcards to amplify student voices.
Join us by completing 200 laps, individually or collectively, or finding a creative way to incorporate the number 200 into your activity to echo Brent’s 200-lap run and call for an additional $200 million for school food.
