Jamie Oliver may have put the quality of school lunches on the political agenda last year - but Hull's universal free meals policy has been truly breaking new ground.
Since May 2004 all primary school pupils in the city have been eligible for free meals, in a pioneering pilot project that has been watched by local authorities across the country, policy-makers and government ministers. Hull has even hosted an international conference to share best practice with other countries.
But to its shame, the new Liberal Democrat leadership of Hull city council this week pulled the plug, saying the policy was "unaffordable". This is a huge blow for thousands of children in the city who have benefited from it. A culture of healthy eating had begun to develop - but for some children, those early habits may not now take root.
The council leader, Carl Minns, has previously questioned the success of the initiative - but surely if it had been a failure, then would it not have been very costly? It is unfortunate that they could not have made this decision once the three-year pilot had been fully evaluated.
The fact is that the pilot has already been a success. In just two years, takeup has almost doubled from 36% to 64%, so more children are eating healthier meals. Researchers at Hull University have also found that pupils' concentration and readiness to learn is improving.
Of course, local authorities face many competing priorities as they seek to balance their budgets. The estimated £3m extra cost of providing free school meals represents a little over 1% of the council's education spending. That's no small beer, but nor will it be a huge saving.
And the investment needed in school meals now could easily be saved in years to come as pupils perform better at school and become healthier, and as the alarming rise in childhood obesity is curbed.
The Child Poverty Action Group has long called for universal free school meals and the Hull experiment backs our case.
The narrow eligibility for free school meals across the rest of the country means that many children, including one million who live in poverty, do not qualify in the first place.
Hard-pressed parents already struggling to get to the end of the week cannot always afford to pay the charges. A recent survey by Unison found the average cost of primary school meals to be £7.40 a week. If you have several school-age children that cost soon mounts up and, sadly, an unhealthy packed lunch is all too often a cheaper alternative.
Even among those who are eligible for free meals, one in four children do not get them. Fear of stigma and bullying, the bureaucracy involved in claiming them and lack of awareness about who is eligible mean that many children lose out.
Children can only get free school meals if their parents or carers receive income support, income-based Jobseekers Allowance, the guaranteed element of state pension credit, or child tax credit - provided they are not entitled to working tax credit and have an annual income less than £14,155. Such a confusing system hardly encourages widespread takeup.
The solution to all these problems is universal free school lunches which guarantee that all children, particularly the poorest, get at least one healthy meal each day. Improving the quality of school meals is vital but, in itself, will have limited impact. If we are serious about boosting healthy eating in school, then free meals available to all are essential.
One largely unnoticed part of the government's education and inspections bill is a new power for local authorities to offer free school meals to all. Hull had to apply for special permission from central government for their scheme - and while this is a welcome step forward for those councils who want to follow their lead, it is not enough. Local authorities need to be given the resources and encouragement to take the leap.
There is also a strong case for protecting free school meals from the swings and roundabouts of town hall politics. Hull's initiative was a long-term one that did not deserve to become a political football.
That's why, ultimately, the universal free school meals policy should be adopted across England and Wales by the Westminster government, and by the Scottish executive north of the border.
Ministers have rightly taken a keen interest in the Hull pilot. It certainly won't have escaped the attention of the education secretary, Alan Johnson, who also happens to be a Hull MP, or the public health minister, Caroline Flint, who recently joined children at a primary school in the city for a healthy lunch.
So alongside other organisations, the Child Poverty Action Group will continue to campaign to reverse the damaging and disappointing decision from Hull. But we will also continue to make the very strong case for a nationwide free school meals policy that benefits all children, whether they live in Hull, Hereford or the Highlands.
· Kate Green is the chief executive of the Child Poverty Action Group