“Distrutto dai dietisti” e confezioni “sudate”: le tue opinioni sui pasti caldi a scuola

It’s not physically possible to have a food scheme that keeps 682,000 children happy 5 days a week.

Absolute whinge fest about a pretty great idea that sounds like it’s been reasonably well implemented

When I heard ‘menu fatigue’ it made me fear for the future of this country

It’s a great concept, and it’s not perfect in its current state.
There are many issues surrounding it-
– The amount of money spent on it when schools are underfunded in other areas is hard to understand.
– The red tape around procurement is unnecessary and takes a huge amount of time. I’m all for financial accountability but it’s at a crazy level.
– The media frenzy last spring about the nutritional value of meals was unwarranted, parents always had the choice of what meal their child would eat. Some were healthier than others but removing chicken rolls etc was unnecessary we all grew up with lunches that weren’t ideal nutritionally. They have replaced tiny pieces of garlic bread that accompanied lasagne with mixed veg. The mixed veg is never eaten.
– When they are served fresh out of the oven they are great, I’ve eaten several that have been leftover and would happily eat again. If they are kept warm in a warm box or not served as soon as possible they do become sweaty with condensation.
– It’s never going to happen that all children are happy with them but overall it’s a great concept.

From my end. Going well. My two are benefiting from the meals. Are they perfect no. Are they good. Yes.

It was such a good idea but seeing it in practice it is hard not to despair at the waste. Most of the kids in my children’s classes have now opted out, the company still gets paid though. It is like airplane food and is driven around for hours before being eaten so has condensation and everything g is mushy. On days out our provider has a cold option that the kids seem to love, a sandwich, muffin and a piece of fruit. That would seem a better option than uneaten hot food but undermines the core concept. Had cooks and kitchen facilities been provided to schools this could have been fab, but of soup or pasta and homemade tomato sauce or whatever would be cheap and fab. With our provider anyway this is money literally being thrown in the bin but the idea is so laudable it is hard to see anyone calling stop (until we run out of corporation tax money)

My kids school have never once gotten a hot meal. They’ve been promised and promised, given loads of start dates but nothing yet so I can’t even comment on the quality of the food

It’s great I don’t waste any money feeding children now

As a teacher I see the sheer waste – a lot of kids don’t eat them, some have opted out, left over food goes home each day. The sweat from the boxes is just disgusting and the smell in the classroom is rotten.
Yes – it is great in the sense that certain children are getting a hot meal that they may not otherwise see.
That’s the only pro. For the cost of it this money could go into funding so much for under resourced schools country wide, get more educational psychologists, proper yard equipment, the list is endless.

Damn those dieticians making our children eat healthy food.

It would be much better to just have cold lunches. Sandwiches, fruit, soup etc

My kids’ school get hot dinners through The Lunch Bag. The menu is decent, I have tried a few bits and they have been pretty good. Their menu has things like cottage pie, gammon and veg, chicken curry, chicken goujons, chickpea cuŕry and veg pizza with a corn on the cob. The menu rotates so you can’t order the same thing every day. Friday often has a one off thing like sausage on a roll, something you may not be able to get on other days. There are halal versions of the meat options and plain pasta and rice too. The app is really clear in terms of nutritional info for each meal. I think it is a great scheme. My son has tried things he wouldn’t usually go for and if I know he isn’t going to love his meal on a day, I will send in an extra snack. It is so unfortunate that it hasn’t been streamlined in a way to ensure it’s efficacy.

One of my concerns is about the packaging. The meals in the school I work in are delivered hot, in cardboard containers that have a thin layer of plastic in them (like most cardboard takeaway containers) and a plastic lid. They’re transported in a styrofoam box. With the heat, the plastic lid collapses inwards.

We know that we are ingesting microplastics all the time. We know that heat makes microplastics release into food. We know there are health implications. We know forever chemicals in our foods and environment cause endocrine issues with far reaching consequences. There is so much we don’t yet know about the impact of all of this – why feed this crap to kids every day? Over all the years of primary school it could have a lasting impact on their health. 

The one our school runs is pretty decent has a good few options and both boys eat it, my eldest would be a picky eater but even he’s tried food he wouldn’t dream of at home overall positive with us tbh.

My kids eat the food and Im glad to have it. Yes the choice is quite limited, but my kids would eat the same thing every day if they were let. Some parents would want far heathlier options but a lot of kids, including mine, would not eat what those parents would consider appropriate.

Its a tough one, but the government actually achieve so little in my opinion – Im happy to chalk this one down as a win