Home Economics and Technology Teachers’ Association of New Zealand

WHERE IS THE HOME ECONOMICS PETITION AT? WE STILL NEED YOUR HELP…
Advocacy to retain the subject in particular, Food & Nutrition, is crucial.
Timeline so far:
1. Petition presented to Green MP spokesperson on Education Lawrence Xu-Nan 16/12/25
2. Submission to support the petition delivered to Parliamentary Services 16/01/26
3. Petition introduced in the House 28/01/26 @ 2.00 pm
4. Petition sitting with the Petitions Committee Upcoming Committee Meetings. No meeting scheduled
week of 2nd March so watch this space.
5. Conversation with Parliamentary petition staffer 09/02/26 (Sue Parkes on behalf of HETTANZ)
6. Oral submission is requested
7. Still open to the receipt of submissions (within 4 - 6 weeks or until petition and submissions are on a parliamentary committee agenda for a hearing – but sooner than later is better)
8. Link to the HETTANZ submission: https://www3.parliament.nz/en/pb/sc/submissions-and-advice/document/54SCPETI_EVI_970b2864-b349-4606-d11c-08de3c440c60_PETI3911/home-economics-and-technology-teachers-assn-of-nz

Aim of the submission:
To retain per the New Zealand Curriculum (2007):
1. Home Economics (Food & Nutrition) in the Aotearoa New Zealand curriculum from Years 1 to 13 (Learning area: Health and Physical Education).
2. Home Economics (Food & Nutrition) as a stand-alone subject in the senior curriculum (Year 12 and 13) subject list, with the specialised curriculum, assessments, and resources.

Compiled by Sue Parkes and Tina Williams.

Great news!
While many have been on holiday, a detailed submission to back up our HETTANZ petition has been written and presented to Parliament (16 January) on the loss of Home Economics /Food and Nutrition..... Tomorrow, Wednesday 27 January, you can watch the Parliamentary TV channel, the submission being tabled in the Parliamentary debating chambers during the parliamentary session at 2.00 pm – 3.00 pm.
The submission will be published in the next HETTANZ news, so everyone can see what Parliament will be reading.

He taonga te Home Economics/Food and Nutrition.

Today we delivered a petition to protect a subject that supports hauora, life skills, nutrition education and promotes equity for our rangatahi. We had the petition packaged in a limited edition ANZAC biscuit tin with home made ANZAC biscuits packaged inside. Why? Because we needed to be remembered but also ANZAC biscuits demonstrate how women’s wartime food practices, shaped by socio-ecological influences, became lasting cultural traditions. The biscuits link historical resourcefulness, community, and wellbeing with contemporary Home Economics, which examines food choices through culture, sustainability, literacy, equity, interconnected systems, and informed decision-making supporting personal, family, and societal wellbeing in Aotearoa’s future.

Thanks to Willow-Jean Prime and Lawrence Xu-Nan for meeting us!

We appreciate your support and listening to us for over half an hour, discussing why our subject should remain part of the new curriculum as an academic pathway. Your time and energy given to us was appreciated. They encouraged us all that this is not the end but just the start of a journey and we need to keep talking to our friends and family about our plight.

Thanks to Nicola Potts and Jess Patel, our Food and Nutrition Kaiārahi; Linda Reeves, friend and teacher of Home Economics who supports our stance; Sue Hannaway, HETTANZ Executive member; and Henry Soper from Avenues, for delivering the petition on behalf of Home Economics teachers across the motu.

"To anyone with even a whiff of common sense, it’s an act of slow educational vandalism that will have huge socio-economic and health impacts in the coming decades."
- Pat Pilcher from Witchdoctor, on removing Home Economics from the curriculum.

➡️ Read the full piece - https://www.witchdoctor.co.nz/2025/nzs-health-prospects-threatened/
➡️ Sign our petition - bit.ly/feed-our-future

NZ's health prospects threatened - Witchdoctor The NZ Government's latest move to axe home economics from the curriculum is utter madness. PAT PILCHER explains why it's so dangerous.

Home Economics tackles modern challenges - like sustainability, food literacy, health equity, and societal impacts on what we eat.

🌱 Let’s keep teaching the next generation how to care for people through food.

Sign the petition: bit.ly/feed-our-future

The Ministry of Education wants to fragment the learning of Home Economics into other subjects.
These phased changes are part of the curriculum refresh, apparently designed to "keep learning relevant, connected and future-focused".

➡️ Nutrition, wellbeing and food choice now sit within Health Education for Years 11-13.
➡️ Food as a context for product development is part of Materials and Processing Technology.
➡️ Practical skills like cooking, food prep and hygiene are now part of Hospitality.

All of that is true today - but it doesn't tell the full story of how this proposal will impact rangatahi for generations to come.

🔗 Want to learn more? Visit our petition on Action Station https://bit.ly/feed-our-future

Did you know there’s a big difference between Home Economics, Food Technology, and Hospitality? They might share a kitchen, but not their purpose!

- Home Economics is about people, health, and wellbeing
- Food Tech is about design, innovation, and product development
- Hospitality is about service, teamwork, and industry skills

The Government wants to remove Home Economics as a standalone academic pathway. Sign our petition to tell them it is too important to lose ➡️ https://bit.ly/feed-our-future