To want DC to be able to throw lunch box leftovers in the bin

[Twiceover]

They bring them home everyday. Squashed bits of uneaten food and everything covered in yoghurt - bleurgh.

Apparently they are not allowed to chuck the rubbish in the bin at school and have to bring it home.

Is this so I can see what they've eaten? Or to stop school bins being filled up?

Either way, totally revolting by the time it's been sitting around til we get home at 6pm!

Send in a sandwich bag and encourage them to put rubbish inside

Same at my DDs' school. It's because children who didn't want to eat their lunch would throw it all in the bin and go out to play. Now they want the uneaten food to stay in the box so parents know whether they've eaten their lunch.

I can see understand the schools logic but I too get the yoghurt smeared lunch bag and crumbs that have stuck in every crevice of the bag. Also leaking fruit juice. ''Tis yuk.

This was happening when my DS started primary 16 years ago and it had probably be going on from years before that so its not a new thing.

Yeah, it is horrible by the end of the day. Not too much you can do about it except think about the food you are sending. I stopped sending yogurts in the summer for example.

Schools have to pay for rubbish to be collected. Also, lots of parents will want their DC to bring home leftovers so they can see what they've eaten.

Though I'd suggest not sending pots of yogurt (which are manky by lunchtime anyway and a PITA to eat).

This happens at our school, it's so parents can see what has been eaten and so the kitchen bin doesn't get too full. I would either stop sending messy food or send a sandwich bag for your child to put their left overs in.

YANBU.

DD's primary school did this as well (and she left Primary in 2009), although they did allow food scraps that could go into the compost so at least there weren't rotting banana skins etc.

I think it was to do that there was too much rubbish etc being chucked and they wanted people to dispose of their own rubbish at home, I can understand that but it's still a total PITA and I honestly think the schools should provide rubbish bins for food scraps.

As we were in a similar position to you, not home until late.

I don't think ds leaves much but he is allowed to throw away empty yoghurt pots, empty packets, etc The spoon I give him goes in the plastic sandwich tub that his bagel/brioche rolls is in.

I can see the logic tbf of being able to see what your child's eaten. When I had packed lunches as a child I used to regularly chuck my cheese sandwich and apple and eat only the jam sandwich and trio. Mmmmm trios! So wasteful though.

Sandwich bag is a good idea but would have to be a new one everyday - lot of plastic.

Sounds like it is worth stopping the yogurt!

It's grim but it's been like this since my eldest started and she is 16 now.
This is why I never send in yoghurt, cut off all crusts/give bread rolls/give pasta or cous cous and only give fruitier veg with no core or peel. If they have crisps I just put a few in a tub.
The most I have to content with is a gold bar wrapper and a sandwich bag and then I make them put the wrapper in the bin themselves.

I reuse sandwich bags, so we only use one each a week.

It is annoying, I've been thinking that for years. Just put a bag in if they have anything messy that day, eg a banana or a yogurt.

It's ridiculous.

I am of the mindset that my kids will eat if they're hungry, and never check what they have or haven't eaten.

The amount of parents though that obsessively check the lunchbox after school- there was one kid in dc's class and the last thing her parents said to her in the morning was eat your lunch, then checked her lunch box on pick up and the first thing they said was why haven't you eaten x,y or z.

I've also had very detailed rundowns of what my kids have eaten on playdates. I really am not worried!

At our school it is because it's a zero waste site so only compost and recycling. Gradually educating oldies through the kids.

Stop giving yogurts

Oh God you are soooo NU.

If I wanna know what they have eaten I will ask them.

I do not need yogurt and squished grapes all over the inside of the lunchbox thanks

Sandwich bag is a good idea but would have to be a new one everyday - lot of plastic.

If it's only food rubbish that's going in it, you can wash the bag out and re-use it. And stop sending plastic pots of yogurt every day if you're worried about too much plastic.

Yoghury decanted into a little plastic tub with lid?
Frube?
Those little fruit shapes with the screw lid and yoghurt inside?

I'm with you 'really'. Eating disorders aside, I just don't understand why some parents get so bothered if their children don't eat all their lunch. If my kids leave something I just think, that's up to them.

I'm really pleased my kids' school lets them throw rubbish away. So their boxes don't get too messy.

But if a child is regularly not eating their ham sandwich or whatever then the parents can rethink what they send. If they think it's getting eaten but really it is being binned every day it's a waste of food.

I am not a clear your plate type of person, but would rather know if something wasn't being eaten just so I could make sure what I was sending was things that he likes.

I'm just thankful they don't send home the leftovers from school dinners for inspection!

The main reason is that it would cost schools a fortune in food waste collection if the children were allowed to bin it.
Also, some parents do want to be able to monitor what has been eaten.

It's so parents can see what's been eaten. A little common sense goes a long way though. Let kids put messy iitems in the bin (yoghurt, half finished juice boxes etc) and just take the rest home.