Why are school meals so bad?

[MondayImInLove]

I am not complaining about the quality, so not a question of costs.

What I don’t understand is why do they always have cake, biscuits, fried ingredients, lots of sauce etc?

I know the cakes are in theory healthier (sugar free, not sure about fat free) but it gives the DC the idea that fruit/yoghurt is not good enough and there has to be cake.

Why do they have to serve a potato (chips) option next to the veg? Of course most children will end up eating the fries. If the option was not there they would eat the veg.

Why are all mains covered in sauce, never steamed fish and veg for example?

I just don’t get it...

My child would not eat the veg because there was no potato. She would eat nothing.

Generally children need a good school meal with calories, for growth and sustenance. The school meals are fine. It's the shot they have outside school that causes obesity. Otherwise why isn't every child obese?

I agree. My daughter prefers fruit but it’s always several days old because no one eats it if cake is available. I send her with her own. It’s a pricey lunch so I’d expect more varied fruit and veg options.

Ours have chips once a week and at least half the kids don't eat them

Personally I think they're fine. And I speak as a wanky kale eating health nut who grew up on fishfingers, chips and beans.

It depends on the school. My DS’s primary school opted out of the LA contract for school meals and employed its own chef whose cooking was fantastic. He did do a pudding every day but main course carbs were only chips on a Friday - otherwise pasta, rice or boiled potatoes. Different veg every day. Admittedly a lot of stews/curries (is that what you mean by sauce?) but excellent food. Maybe you should ask the school?

Ours (primary school) are pretty good to be honest.
And a good variety of items is a good idea so that everyone will eat something.

At our school they can’t have chips on a Friday, if Yorkshire puddings are on the menu the day before...? madness.

But cheap meat and stodgy puddings seem to be exempt from the rule.

School dinner could be better and there is so much variation between school. But it’s for filling a need.

@purplewaterbottle do you give him a cake or biscuit after every single meal though?

If you think primary school meals are bad, you should see what's on offer at my kids' secondary. Run by Sodexo. Overpriced, unhealthy, inadequate shite (think overboiled pasta with chip shop curry sauce dribbled over it), served by rude, surly staff who treat the students like crap. One woman called a boy a fat c*nt for buying three slices of cold pizza for lunch.

DS1 and his friends staged a little protest by taking in a tablecloth and place mats and proper glasses to drink out of. The head of behaviour was called in and they were threatened with isolation for being disruptive

Looking back, the primary school meals weren't that bad. I think you'd be hard pressed for find an identifiable vegetable in the Sodexo canteen.

What the hell would the cake be made of if it was sugar free and fat free??! Dust?!

YABU OP. You clearly have no idea what makes up a varied and balanced diet.

School dinners are fine unless they vary from school to school. How do you know most children wouldn't eat the veg? Mine would and do choose it over most and have it every day as do their friends.

My child's school is quite good alongside the meals there is always a salad bar fresh fruit and bread

Do children really need to eat potato/pasta/rice at lunch every single day?
Or have a pudding other than fruit or yoghurt?

I have fond memories of the school dinners I had 40 years ago. Good enough that it was the only time I was willingly eating liver and bacon.

You are making the mistake of lumping every school in the country into the same box.

The vast majority of primary schools have a carefully planned menu which includes a variety of food. If your child's school does not have the option of fruit or yoghurt as a pudding or they serve chips daily then that is a problem you need to raise with your child's school.

I don't see these issues you are bemoaning reflected in every school's meals.

Monday - i agree with you about the puddings. But what’s your big objection to carbohydrates?

I think the school dinner's at my DS's primary school are fantastic! There is a good choice they are a good quality and healthy.

The meals at ds school are infinitely better than what was served up when I was at school!

@MondayImInLove they do need some kind of carb with each meal, a small jacket potato is no worse than two slices of bread for a sandwich. I don't see the need for 'dessert' after lunch though, fruit or yoghurt should be fine. I think it really does differ school to school though. My gran's neighbor is the head cook at the local primary it's not contracted out, and lunches are simple but home cooked style food, not processed or packets, chicken and veg stew or jacket potatoes with chilli and broccoli, spaghetti Bolognese with veg blended into the sauce. They have fruit and salad bar every day and only a treat dessert on a Friday (last time I visited she was planning baked bananas with home made coconut frozen yoghurt for that Friday) which seems reasonable to me

I'm pretty sure the puddings at my DD's school are not sugar free. Can't imaging them tasting very nice if they were! Or maybe they use honey/golden syrup, which is essentially the same thing.....

Er yes children do need to eat healthy potatoes, healthy rice, healthy pasta with every meal.

Potatoes are literally the healthiest food on the planet.

Unfortunately the lunch may be a main meal for some kids. I imagine cake is more filling than fruit and yoghurt.

As above, the meal has to be sustaining for those who may get very little or even nothing else to eat that day.

DS's school has similar meals to those Dottysmum posted.
Children are growing and should be active, so they need the carbs and the calories.