Nursery food

[becca2906]

My (almost) two year old son returned from his first day at nursery today and I was appalled to discover that for his meals they gave him bread and butter as he “tried but didn’t like” the food on offer.
Am I being unreasonable by being so upset? Surely they could give him a sandwich and some fruit?! The fees are just about affordable so makes it worse he’s not even getting three meals.

I guess if it keeps happening see what else can be done but hopefully the food will be ok soon.

They can't be making alternative sandwiches for every child who doesn't fancy the main, it'd be chaos!

I think it's decent of them to offer bread and butter, most nurseries would only offer a piece of fruit if the meal was refused.

My reception child gets a cheese or ham sandwich if they don't eat the main meal. It's a long day and they need something and not all kids like curry for example.

If the nursery don't provide it maybe you can make a sandwich to take kn each day and ask them to give it at dinner if he doesn't eat either lunch or dinner.

Most nurseries don't even do bread & butter as an option - it's take it or leave it.

Did I misunderstand your earlier post or do the nursery really not offer snacks at all during the day, given that you said "no dessert or snacks were offered"? I'm not saying it's a bad thing if they only do meals and not snacks, but it is extremely unusual for a nursery. If they don't offer snacks, just meals, and he is in there full time (e.g. 8am - 6pm) then I do agree that I'd expect him to be offered at least some fruit during the course of the day.

Honestly if this is still happening in a few weeks I’d worry but not one day. My DD didn’t eat for the first week at nursery, it was a new, loud and scary environment for her. Safe to say by the time she left to go to school, she would ask for seconds or thirds of every meal.

I work in a nursery. If every child that didn't want to eat the main meal was offered a sandwich we would soon have many more children saying they didn't want to eat, just to get a sandwich! Surely they have snack times at your little ones nursery, morning and afternoon? I also agree with pp's that he will most likely start to try the meals offered the more he settles in.

I wouldn't expect any alternative, so yabu.

My children don't get alternatives at home, as I expect them to eat their food. Offering alternatives just creates fussiness.

I'm sure either fruit or another dessert was offered.

@GeorgieTheGorgeousGoat

What’s the point of that question? Many many kids are fussy for no obvious reason

They don't give any alternatives at DSs nursery if they don't eat their meal, and they don't serve puddings at all.

I don't mind, as they do they have snacks mid morning and mid afternoon (before nursery tea).

I think it's a good approach actually. If they gave alternatives you may find he becomes fussier at home, leading to a lower nutritional intake overall.

A few days of bread and butter won't hurt him but may lead to better eating long term

@GeorgieTheGorgeousGoat fussiness is a hangover from evolution. Little kids who went round eating every berry and mushroom died and their genes went with them, those who were fussy and waited to see if a food was 'safe' didn't. It's totally natural for kids to refuse foods, particularly if they are in a new setting.

I do think it's a bit rubbish that he had that and only that for both meals. If DD doesn't like what's offered at nursery (which she usually does, to be fair), she's offered a combination of yoghurt, toast, banana, etc. I wouldn't mind if she only had bread and butter for lunch, say, but would then expect fruit and yoghurt or something if she also refused her tea.

[quote Shitandhills]@GeorgieTheGorgeousGoat fussiness is a hangover from evolution. Little kids who went round eating every berry and mushroom died and their genes went with them, those who were fussy and waited to see if a food was 'safe' didn't. It's totally natural for kids to refuse foods, particularly if they are in a new setting.[/quote]
Twaddle.

We're there bit snacks on between? I feel like DS' nursery constantly gives them food! He had breakfast at home done children have it there earlier than he starts, then they have snack at 10 which is usually carb protein and fruit or veg, so pitta humous and apple for example, then they have lunch (sometimes hot food like pasta sometimes sandwiches and crudités) and yogurt at 12:30 snack at 2:30 same set up as before example a cheese and veg mini quiche each that they'd make and some grapes, then dinner fish pie and peas today followed by pudding, today it was flapjacks (no sugar made with banana) , the portions are not huge but they give seconds for dinner. I think DS eats more at nursery than at home. Point being if he didn't like one of the meals and had very little or bread and butter there is plenty other food on offer during the day. They also get the option of milk or water with meals. None of them go hungry even the fussier ones

*were there not snacks in-between

In all the nurseries I've ever worked at not one has ever given an alternative to a meal, so would think even bread and butter is lucky

If this is a Scottish nursery, then this is the Government/ Care Inspectorate guidance for every setting.

Our nursery would have said "Sally didn't eat her lunch" and that would be it. No bread and butter, no alternative.

Seems fine. They can eat their lunch/tea or have something to fill them up and give them some energy, but in a boring way. If it wasn't boring the nursery would end up making 30 roast dinners per day only for them all to go in the bin.

In my house if you don’t want dinner, you can have toast and butter (ie bread and butter) or cereal. That’s it. As much of those as you like- but you’re not getting anything else.

I think it’s fairly standard- both in nurseries and at home…

@Ileflottante it's not twaddle actually. Evolution weeded out humans with a high bitter threshold (ie the ones eating food which was more bitter, which is associated with poisonous substances). This left a population of humans with lower bitter tolerance, even where some of those bitter tasting foods aren't poisonous. Little humans then rely on bigger humans to show them food is safe when their instincts are telling them it is poisonous.

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/7878094/