Packed Lunch Audit

SCHOOL: Norbury Primary School

CONTACT: Tania Mathiason

HEP REPRESENTATIVES: Dominic Green

DATE: 21st October 2015

PURPOSE OF VISIT: Pupil packed lunch baseline audit

NOTES OF VISIT:

The audit was completed by Dominic Green working for Health Education Partnership

A total of 134 lunchboxes were assessed

Information about packed lunches

The recent government report, the School Food Plan suggested the preference of school packed lunch as the reason for the decrease in school lunch uptake in recent years contributing to an increase in school age obesity. Research highlights that buying a well-balanced school lunch is now the most nutritious choice for children and young people due to the introduction of the school food standards. These standards do not apply to lunch boxes, but following the School Food Plan schools now have governmental support to help children to make healthier choices by possibly restricting unhealthy options at school.

A survey, commissioned by the Food Standards Agency in 2010 showed that the average packed lunch brought in from home contained far too much fat (especially saturated fat), sugar and up to half the daily limit of salt, all of which can contribute to long term health issues. Only one in five packed lunches contained any vegetables, only about half contained a portion of fruit or vegetables and only one in ten contained salad. The British Medical Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health also found that, of 1,300 packed lunches surveyed across the UK, 99% did not meet the school food standards. “Excess sugar is one of the biggest threats to children’s nutrition - at the moment, they’re having two to three times more sugar than recommended” - Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition, 17th July 2015 Sugar and your health – The Facts The reality is that consuming too much sugar will have a detrimental effect on your health: Sugar provides the body with empty calories that give us energy without any nutrients.

As a result, we eat more without feeling full or satisfied. This leads to an increased risk

of weight gain, certain diseases, and a cycle of highs and lows in energy levels, which will leave you feeling tired and craving even more sugar

Frequent consumption can lead to tooth decay. A report by the Royal College of Surgeons published earlier this year showed tooth decay to be the most common reason five- to nine-year-olds were admitted to hospital

It can also lead to type-2 diabetes, the levels of which have risen dramatically in recent years. Being overweight or obese also increases your risk of developing the disease. Diabetes UK reports that there are currently 3.3 million people in the UK living with diabetes, and many of these cases are type-2

What to remember

The key thing to remember is that overall, eating healthily is all about balance. Indulgent foods, such as those high in fat and/or sugar, can be enjoyed and savoured, but only occasionally, not every day. The majority of our diet should be made up of balanced, nutritious everyday foods.

Are packed lunches more attractive than school dinners?

Are children opting for packed lunches because they can have the indulgent foods every day such as crisps, confectionary or a sugary drink? Schools have a responsibility to ensure children make the right choices and with the introduction of a comprehensive packed lunch policy will ensure packed lunches are not a ‘better’ option than a freshly prepared school meal. A policy can discourage, restrict or ban sugary drinks, crisps and confectionery, alternatively prizes and other incentives can be introduced for bringing in a healthy packed lunch. Some schools have banned packed lunches outright, if you want to do this, try starting with your newest intake (pupils in reception). The ban will then apply to all the years that follow, until it extends to the whole school. Perhaps, an easy to enforce first step would be to restrict the type of drinks in lunchboxes to water only. Promote to parents free drinking water is available to packed lunch pupils, and the benefits such as cost saving and tooth decay prevention. Then think about restricting crisps and confectionary items, your school may decide just to allow crisps one day a week in the transition stage.

All foods provide energy and nutrients and it is achieving the correct intake of those nutrients that is important for health. Variety is the key to a healthy diet, so try to encourage parents not to offer the same foods on consecutive days. By including a broad range of different foods, a much wider variety of nutrients will be eaten. Healthy eating is simply about getting a better balance and eating a wide variety of foods. So encourage your children to try new foods and develop a healthy enjoyment of food.

Norbury Primary School – Packed Lunches - Key Findings:

The lunchboxes assessed were below the recommended standard with some not providing children with the nutrients they need to grow well, do well at school and stay healthy. Many packed lunches were lacking essential nutrients, three quarters were without vegetables or salad and some contained just bread and butter or confectionary fillings such as chocolate spread and jam. Half of all packed lunches did not have any fruit or dairy foods (milk, yoghurt, cheese) and 17 packed lunches were lacking any form of carbohydrate, essential for healthy active lifestyles. On a positive note very few packed lunches contained crisps and only one contained a sugary drink. A revision of your school’s Packed Lunch Policy is recommended to encourage fruit and vegetable consumption and restriction of high sugar processed snacks and sweet sandwich fillings. This is part of your School Food Policy and should involve a representative group of people including pupils, teacher, governor and parents. If everyone has ownership of it then it is easier to enforce. The government initiated School Food Plan favours school dinners as a lunch time meal choice due to the nutritional benefits and encourages schools not to make packed lunches the preferred pupil choice.

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Graph showing the results of a packed lunch audit at Norbury Primary School

21st October 2015

Percentage

Extreme example of branded and processed lunch box fillers

Examples of healthy pupil packed lunches Not all packed lunches lacked essential nutrients; I did observe some packed lunches that offered a balanced meal.

Universal Infant Free School Meal (UIFSM) Uptake 48 key stage one pupils were recorded having a packed lunch rather than a free healthy and nutritious school meal, the government has set a target UIFSM uptake of 87%. School meals are not suitable for every child due to some having complex dietary issues such as allergies, intolerances or phobias however schools should encourage pupils and parents to take this free entitlement. An infant free school meal is worth around £380 per year per pupil, not taking into account both the monetary and time savings when not having to prepare a healthy packed lunch.

Tuna and vegetable pasta salad and fruit

School lunch time observation

Norbury Primary School operates an in-house catered lunch service. The school has great pride in the quality of their school meals.

A good salad selection was available in addition to daily vegetable choice.

Dining room staff offered encouragement and support resulting in a friendly dining experience.

Packed lunch pupils were allowed to sit with their school lunch peers. This is good practice and works well when a packed lunch policy is in place restricting high sugar content snacks.

Chocolate spread was a favourite packed lunch sandwich choice. If Norbury Primary School has a nut free policy parents should be made aware the majority of chocolate spreads contain nuts, even when not obvious.

Ingredients: Tesco value chocolate spread

Sugar, Rapeseed Oil, Palm Oil, Fat Reduced Cocoa Powder (8%), Milk Sugar, Whey Powder (Milk), Carob Powder, Emulsifier (Sunflower Lecithins), Flavouring, Hazelnuts

Recommendations

Introduce a packed lunch policy in consultation with pupils, parent and parents to

encourage a standard mirroring the variety of the school meal service currently on

offer and in line with the government’s ‘Eatwell Plate’.

Restrict chocolate spread if the school has a ‘nut free’ policy

Restrict the ‘sweet treats’ to mirror the school menu rather than allow confectionary

and other high sugar snacks. Encourage parents to pack fruit based cakes instead of

treats with very high sugar content.

Promote to parents the healthy eating guidelines attached in this report including

the benefits of fruit, vegetables and salad daily. The salad and vegetable content

especially is low compared to the borough average.

Packed lunch pupils were noted eating their food from bags or closed lunch boxes as

if they didn’t want their peers to see the contents. Lunch time should be an open

and inclusive experience without secrecy between each other. Providing KS1 packed

lunch pupil with a paper plate or napkin to lay out their lunch onto may encourage

healthier eating when the contents are visible to all.

Raising awareness through the curriculum and parent engagement of the dangers a

diet high in fat and sugar and encourage pupils to opt for healthier food choices.

Parent interventions and workshops may initiate the ‘nudge effect’ and encourage

healthier option rather than the supermarket confectionary aisle.

Packed Lunch Audit Statistics Norbury Primary School – 22nd October 2015

Fruit

48% of lunchboxes included at least one portion of fruit

Salad and Vegetables

25% contained at least one portion of salad or vegetables

Starchy Foods

87% of the lunch boxes contained some form of carbohydrate (bread, potatoes, rice or pasta)

Lean Meat, Fish or Vegetable Protein Alternative

45% of lunchboxes contained a healthy source of protein such as meat, fish, eggs or beans

Processed Meat Products

19% of lunchboxes contained meat products such as pepperoni, sausage rolls or pasties

Dairy Food

51% of lunchboxes contained a minimum of one portion of dairy such as cheese or yoghurt.

Water, Milk or Fruit Juice

25% of lunchboxes contained either water, milk or fruit juice

Soft Drinks – (diet or no sugar added)

0% included a drink labelled as ‘diet’ or ‘no added sugar’

Soft Drinks - (sweetened or sugary)

1% of lunchboxes had a flavoured sweetened drinks

Crisps (or any snack with salt)

13% of lunchboxes contained crisps

Confectionary – (sweets, chocolate, cereal bars or items sweetened with sugar)

28% of lunchboxes contained confectionery

Packed Lunch Guidance Recommendations – Foods Recommended

Packed Lunch should be based on the national standards for school meals and the Eatwell

Plate; a healthy packed lunch should be made up of the following food groups.

Fruit and vegetable food

group

Choose at least one portion from this food group

One portion of vegetables e.g. vegetable sticks

such as carrots, peppers or cucumbers or lettuce.

One portion of fruit e.g. fresh fruit such as

bananas, apples or canned fruits in fruit juice or

dried fruits such as raisins or apricots.

Breads, rice, potatoes, pasta

and other starchy foods

Your child’s packed lunch should include at least one

portion from this food group, for example:

Sandwiches made with a variety of breads such as

pita, bagels, wraps, chapatti, roti, and rolls (offer a

mix of wholegrain, brown and white varieties).

Salads made with pasta, rice, couscous, noodles or

potatoes.

Milk and dairy foods

Choose at least one portion from this food group, for

example:

Low fat yoghurt, custard or fromage frais, cheese,

semi skimmed milk.

Soya products that have added calcium.

Meat, fish, eggs, beans and

other non-dairy sources of

protein

Choose at least one portion from this food group, for

example:

Meat, chicken, fish and eggs.

Beans such as chickpeas, kidney, haricot or lentils.

A healthy drink

A healthy drink should be included; water, semi-skimmed

milk, pure fruit juice or fruit juice made from concentrate,

diluted fruit juice, drinks with less than 5% added sugars

or artificial – Limited depending on packed lunch policy

*Juice drinks and flavoured waters are not recommended.

Packed Lunch Guidance Foods / Drinks Not Recommended on a Daily Basis

Foods / Drinks high in fat and

or sugar

The following foods and drinks are not recommended as

part of a healthy packed lunch:

Crisps, fried food (chicken & chips) or takeaways.

Cereal bars, cakes, biscuits, muffins, and

doughnuts and other foods containing fat and

sugar.

Juice drinks, sports drinks and flavoured waters.

Confectionary such as chocolate bars, chocolate

coated biscuits and sweets.

The following high sugar foods and drinks cannot be

brought into school for health and safety reasons:

Fizzy drinks and energy drinks.

Chewing gum

Schools can monitor the packed lunches in the following ways:

Incentives can be given to the children with balanced packed lunches.

Packed lunches regularly containing food and drinks not recommended will be

recorded and a slip will be sent home to parent’s outline which foods are not

recommended.

Foods which cannot be brought into school will be taken away and returned to your

child at the end of the day.

Occasional treats Having a healthy lunch does not mean not allowing any treats. Healthier treats could include a slice of malt loaf, banana bread, fruit jelly or a fruit scone.

Here are some ideas that are suitable as a sweet treat in packed lunches.

Banana cake Plain, fruit or cheese and chive scones Apple, apricot and sultana squares Homemade fruity flapjacks Bag of plain popcorn (you could try this dusted with cinnamon or mixed with dried

apple or banana chips)

Two Weeks of Healthy Packed Lunches

Week one Week Two

Monday

Turkey baguette with tomato and

lettuce, low-fat spread

Fruit cocktail in natural juice &

cherry tomatoes

Low-fat fruit yoghurt

Water

Egg, cress and mayonnaise in brown

roll

Canned peaches in juice & cucumber

batons

Plain popcorn, small packet (no

added salt or sugar)

Water

Tuesday

Ham, salad and tomato in a granary

roll

Grapes & Peppers

Cheese and crackers

Fruit bun e.g. tea cake

Water

Tuna and sweetcorn pasta salad

Banana & cucumber sticks

Low fat fromage frais

Currant bun

Water

Wednesday

Tuna, sweet corn and mayonnaise

sandwich

Kiwi fruit & cherry tomatoes

Rice pudding

Water

Chicken couscous with mushrooms,

peppers and onion

Pineapple pieces & carrot sticks

Water

Healthier lunchbox checklist

Have you included…?

a good portion of starchy food, e.g. thick wholemeal

bread, chapatti, pitta pocket, pasta or rice salad?

plenty of fruit and vegetables,

e.g. an apple, a satsuma, handful of cherry tomatoes or carrot sticks, mini-can of fruit chinks or small box of raisins?

a portion of milk or dairy food,

e.g. individual cheese portion or pot of yogurt?

a portion of lean meat, fish or alternative, e.g. ham,

chicken, beef, tuna, egg, hummus or bean/lentil salad?

a drink, e.g milk or water.

Most importantly enjoy your lunch!

Thursday

English muffin toasted, with

reduced-fat hard cheese, tomato

and ham slices

Grapes & pepper sticks

Water

Malt loaf

Bagel with salad, canned salmon and

cream cheese

Apple & carrot batons

Water

Pot of low fat custard

Friday

Potato salad with chicken pieces

Ready-to-eat apricots & carrot

sticks

Fruit bun

Milk, semi-skimmed

Cheese and salad wrap

Satsuma & Cherry tomatoes

Slice of malt load

Yoghurt drink

Parent Packed Lunch Checklist