Some schools in Italy are planning to serve chicken curry and couscous in place of traditional pork-based dishes as they adapt menus for Muslim pupils.
In Pordenone, in the Friuli-Venezia Giulia region, dishes such as San Daniele prosciutto, pasta all’amatriciana—which traditionally contains pork cheek—and porchetta are due to be removed from some school menus.
Supporters of the change say it is intended to make school dining more inclusive, particularly because many pupils cannot eat pork for religious reasons.
Children from immigrant families make up around 21 per cent of pupils in the area, including both foreign-born students and those born in Italy to migrant parents. That figure is roughly twice the national average.
The proposal argues that serving pork-based meals is impractical when a significant share of students are unable to eat them.
Regional guidance, issued under the centre-Right administration, recommends that school cafeterias serve more white meat than red meat. Beef, however, will remain on the menu.
The approach will vary between schools: some will continue offering pork, while others are expected to remove it entirely.
In an unusual exception, pupils at one primary school in Spilimbergo will still be able to add ham to their pizzas.
The proposal has triggered an intense political argument in Italy, where immigration and demographic changes have helped create a more multicultural society in recent decades, much like those in Britain and France.
Chicken curry and couscous are expected to replace pork dishes at some Italian schools. The stock image shows antipasti meats, including prosciutto crudo.
Marco Dreosto, a politician from the conservative League Party, criticised the plan, arguing: “Respect for other cultures and religions cannot and must not require us to abandon our traditions.”
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League members of the European Parliament Anna Maria Cisint, Silvia Sardone and Susanna Ceccardi also condemned the decision to replace pork dishes, calling it “absurd”.
Emanuele Loperfido, the Pordenone representative for Brothers of Italy—Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s party—said coexistence should be supported, but warned that Italian cuisine “cannot take a step backwards”.
Fausto Tomasello of the centre-Left Democratic Party said the priority should be ensuring that children are provided with nutritious, healthy meals.
Alessandro Basso, the province’s mayor, said schools should provide alternatives that recognise different religious beliefs, while preserving local dishes wherever possible.
The dispute comes after Italy’s government introduced a limit of 30 per cent on pupils with a low level of Italian in individual classrooms.
The policy is expected to affect about 1,000 classrooms nationwide, representing approximately 0.3 per cent of all classrooms in Italy.
The same decree also included a ban on burqas and niqabs in classrooms. Parents who breach the rule could face fines of up to €1,000 (£870).
Ms Meloni said the measures were designed to prevent the creation of “ghetto classes” and promote integration in schools.
In a social media statement, the prime minister described the legislation as a set of “common-sense measures” intended to support genuine integration, avoid “ghetto” classrooms and give every student equal opportunities.
However, the opposition accused the coalition, made up of the Brothers of Italy, The League and Forza Italia, of weaponising immigration ahead of a possible General Election in the upcoming year.
It comes as National Future, a new far-Right party led by former army general Roberto Vannacci, is fast becoming a political headache for Ms Meloni, polling with 7 per cent of the vote.