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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

To wonder what is dangerous about my child’s lunch

567 replies

NameChangeAK · 22/04/2024 20:20

I received a message from school today saying my child’s lunch contained a prohibited item and to please review the policy “as there are children with severe allergies and it’s dangerous not to comply”

I don’t usually provide packed lunches - DC has school meals, but they did like todays meal options.

Ive responded and asked what the item was but waiting for a response, but I’m confused - it’s clearly a nut free school but I can’t see anything else anywhere about other banned foods

the packed lunch contained:

  • ham sandwich (with butter) on brown bread
  • apple
  • frube (strawberry flavour)
  • carton of own brand apple juice
  • Pepperami
  • babybel

any ideas what could be the problem or Aibu to think they’ve mistaken the ham as peanut butter or something ridiculous?

OP posts:
HappyEater · 23/04/2024 13:26

Snippit · 23/04/2024 12:28

Thank Christ I no longer have children of school age, it’s gone fukin crackers! Are crackers allowed by the way? 🤔

A gooseberry and cinnamon yoghurt wouldn’t be allowed! Hark!

PercyJackson · 23/04/2024 13:27

Is UPF just the latest bandwagon for everyone to jump on and use as a stick to beat others with? It's never done in a helpful or educational way, just thrown in as a 'way too much UPF for me' dig.

CelesteCunningham · 23/04/2024 13:28

CustardySergeant · 23/04/2024 13:25

CelesteCunningham I'm so puzzled by the last line of your post at 10.07

"DD came home with two top hats, delighted with herself."

She came home with two of these? 😕

Lol, does everyone not have top hats?!

These things:

To wonder what is dangerous about my child’s lunch
HappyEater · 23/04/2024 13:28

PercyJackson · 23/04/2024 13:27

Is UPF just the latest bandwagon for everyone to jump on and use as a stick to beat others with? It's never done in a helpful or educational way, just thrown in as a 'way too much UPF for me' dig.

A MN dream… a big salad is fine, everything else is not.

godmum56 · 23/04/2024 13:29

Caerulea · 23/04/2024 13:24

@godmum56 not forgetting that by The Laws Of UPF wine & beer are better than a glass of reconstituted orange juice...

well that's true enough!!

CelesteCunningham · 23/04/2024 13:29

PercyJackson · 23/04/2024 13:27

Is UPF just the latest bandwagon for everyone to jump on and use as a stick to beat others with? It's never done in a helpful or educational way, just thrown in as a 'way too much UPF for me' dig.

Yup. Ill-defined and usually spouted by the "chemicals = bad" brigade.

Gettingonmygoat · 23/04/2024 13:30

Snippit · 23/04/2024 12:28

Thank Christ I no longer have children of school age, it’s gone fukin crackers! Are crackers allowed by the way? 🤔

Probably not, too much salt no doubt.

Theunamedcat · 23/04/2024 13:31

HappyEater · 23/04/2024 13:28

A MN dream… a big salad is fine, everything else is not.

But does it have more than five ingredients?

PercyJackson · 23/04/2024 13:31

CelesteCunningham · 23/04/2024 13:28

Lol, does everyone not have top hats?!

These things:

I have never seen these before! That's my lunch sorted...

CelesteCunningham · 23/04/2024 13:32

PercyJackson · 23/04/2024 13:31

I have never seen these before! That's my lunch sorted...

Afraid to break it to you, but you had an empty, joyless childhood. Wink

Theunamedcat · 23/04/2024 13:32

Needanewname42 · 23/04/2024 13:25

Good god why is everyone on their high horse about UPF????
Technically baby milk is UPF but nobody in their right mind would suggest parents don't use it.

Where have you been living? Everyone uses baby milk as a stick to beat people with

HappyEater · 23/04/2024 13:32

Theunamedcat · 23/04/2024 13:31

But does it have more than five ingredients?

Oh god, mumsnet crossed with Eddie Abbew. What fresh hell.

CustardySergeant · 23/04/2024 13:33

CelesteCunningham · 23/04/2024 13:28

Lol, does everyone not have top hats?!

These things:

Thanks, Celeste. I'm sure my ignorance of those cakes is totally due to the fact that I'm absolutely ancient. 😄

CelesteCunningham · 23/04/2024 13:34

CustardySergeant · 23/04/2024 13:33

Thanks, Celeste. I'm sure my ignorance of those cakes is totally due to the fact that I'm absolutely ancient. 😄

Lol, me too. Grin Must be an Irish thing! I thought they were universal.

Sadly, clearly due to be banned due to UPFs.

adviceaunt · 23/04/2024 13:36

Could any of those things... ask!

adviceaunt · 23/04/2024 13:36

DoAWheelie · 22/04/2024 20:26

Was it a seeded bread?

Good point

PercyJackson · 23/04/2024 13:37

adviceaunt · 23/04/2024 13:36

Could any of those things... ask!

Thank goodness she did ask (as she said she'd done in her OP) and found out what it is several pages ago!

adviceaunt · 23/04/2024 13:37

WittiestUsernameEver · 22/04/2024 20:39

I'd be responding "I think this has been sent to the wrong parent" and ignore it and carry on as you were.

Ah as long as your child is happy and ok... stuff all the others eh

HappyEater · 23/04/2024 13:38

adviceaunt · 23/04/2024 13:36

Good point

It was not.

Allergictoironing · 23/04/2024 13:38

It can be easy to tell whether something classed as "processed" or "UPF" if it's at the far end of the scale, but where do people draw the line?

I can't see why a "natural" flavoring (as an example from above) in food means it's UPF, it could be as simple as a bit of fruit juice as a flavour enhancer or honey/sugar as a sweetener - you probably aren't talking about MSG in many cases.

Equally just because there are additional naturally occurring additives in a food doesn't always make it UPF. Addition of a vegetable oil could be there to change the texture slightly, plus what's the issue with having vegetable oil rather than butter in some foods e.g. I have been known to make bread with some vegetable oil in place of some butter, does that mean my home made bread is UPF?

The definition of UPFs keeps changing over time, and there's plenty of dispute about the various different definitions out there. The entire NOVA definition (that seems to be the accepted one) is too long to quote here & I think people can find it themselves using Google with little effort, but the extract I think is most relevant is below

"Ultra-processed foods are operationally distinguishable from processed foods by the presence of food substances of no culinary use (varieties of sugars such as fructose, high-fructose corn syrup, 'fruit juice concentrates', invert sugar, maltodextrin, dextrose and lactose; modified starches; modified oils such as hydrogenated or interesterified oils; and protein sources such as hydrolysed proteins, soya protein isolate, gluten, casein, whey protein and 'mechanically separated meat') or of additives with cosmetic functions (flavours, flavour enhancers, colours, emulsifiers, emulsifying salts, sweeteners, thickeners and anti-foaming, bulking, carbonating, foaming, gelling and glazing agents) in their list of ingredients.[23]"

Interestingly, many of the "shock, horror" items referred to by pp such as sugars and vegetable oils in an unmodified state, don't seem to come under that definition.

Allergictoironing · 23/04/2024 13:52

Oh I've just seen all the comments about the "more than 5 ingredients". Well that's my home made bread out of the window, with or without vegetable oil! Flour, milk, yeast, butter, sugar, salt - and that's before I add anything like seeds or fruit to it! Then there's things like meat rubs, I use at least 5 spices or herbs in most of those.

I wonder if the "more than 5 ingredients" thing works for combination foods, like chocolate swiss roll (flour, baking powder, eggs, gran sugar, cocoa, butter, icing sugar). But Eton mess is absolutely fine to eat all day long as it only has 4 ingredients - eggs, sugar, fruit, cream 😂

CelesteCunningham · 23/04/2024 13:58

Allergictoironing · 23/04/2024 13:52

Oh I've just seen all the comments about the "more than 5 ingredients". Well that's my home made bread out of the window, with or without vegetable oil! Flour, milk, yeast, butter, sugar, salt - and that's before I add anything like seeds or fruit to it! Then there's things like meat rubs, I use at least 5 spices or herbs in most of those.

I wonder if the "more than 5 ingredients" thing works for combination foods, like chocolate swiss roll (flour, baking powder, eggs, gran sugar, cocoa, butter, icing sugar). But Eton mess is absolutely fine to eat all day long as it only has 4 ingredients - eggs, sugar, fruit, cream 😂

I think the ingredients only count if you wrap it in plastic and print them on it. Otherwise it's, obviously, very naice and healthy.

Aria999 · 23/04/2024 14:05

. I have been known to make bread with some vegetable oil in place of some butter, does that mean my home made bread is UPF?

The vegetable oil itself is upf so yes technically it would be better to use olive oil, if you care enough!

Aria999 · 23/04/2024 14:10

I think because olive oil just needs pressing but other vegetable oil is often treated with solvents in order to extract the oil.

godmum56 · 23/04/2024 14:15

Allergictoironing · 23/04/2024 13:38

It can be easy to tell whether something classed as "processed" or "UPF" if it's at the far end of the scale, but where do people draw the line?

I can't see why a "natural" flavoring (as an example from above) in food means it's UPF, it could be as simple as a bit of fruit juice as a flavour enhancer or honey/sugar as a sweetener - you probably aren't talking about MSG in many cases.

Equally just because there are additional naturally occurring additives in a food doesn't always make it UPF. Addition of a vegetable oil could be there to change the texture slightly, plus what's the issue with having vegetable oil rather than butter in some foods e.g. I have been known to make bread with some vegetable oil in place of some butter, does that mean my home made bread is UPF?

The definition of UPFs keeps changing over time, and there's plenty of dispute about the various different definitions out there. The entire NOVA definition (that seems to be the accepted one) is too long to quote here & I think people can find it themselves using Google with little effort, but the extract I think is most relevant is below

"Ultra-processed foods are operationally distinguishable from processed foods by the presence of food substances of no culinary use (varieties of sugars such as fructose, high-fructose corn syrup, 'fruit juice concentrates', invert sugar, maltodextrin, dextrose and lactose; modified starches; modified oils such as hydrogenated or interesterified oils; and protein sources such as hydrolysed proteins, soya protein isolate, gluten, casein, whey protein and 'mechanically separated meat') or of additives with cosmetic functions (flavours, flavour enhancers, colours, emulsifiers, emulsifying salts, sweeteners, thickeners and anti-foaming, bulking, carbonating, foaming, gelling and glazing agents) in their list of ingredients.[23]"

Interestingly, many of the "shock, horror" items referred to by pp such as sugars and vegetable oils in an unmodified state, don't seem to come under that definition.

I find the "no culinary use thing" a bit crazy....you can thicken with flour or cornflour, fruit juice concentrate can be home made and a healthy flavouring, herbs and spices are flavours, food can be coloured with beetroot, blueberries, cherry juice and so on. lactose is in breastmilk as well as all mammalian milks.....not that I amn suggesting that we all start cooking with breast milk.