School demands hot food for lunchboxes, please help!!

[aiti72]

I'm really new at this lunchbox thing, DD1 just started school and for two weeks has happily had her sandwich, yogurt and fruit in her lunchbox. Now the school send a letter to us parents saying as weather gets cold the lunchboxes should have a hot meal. I'm desperately trying to look for a container that can keep a pasta dish hot (no way I can get DD1 to eat soup at school), do you put that in a flask or? Surely it doesn't come out once it's in... really bad at this I know!! What kind of box/thermos would you recommed for a hot dish that's not liquid?

Any advice would be great!!!

I would completely ignore the letter. There is nothing they can do to enforce it.

The nutritious content of the food is more important than the temperature. If you try and send in hot food in a flask you will probably soon be dealing with food poisoning.

Put a vest on her and tell the school to turn the heating up.

Also at the school's suggestion. Feels like another way of enslaving mothers as presumably you have to cook it in the morning rather than the evening before and reheat due to food poisoning issues. Don't we all have better things to do than cook a meal for lunchtime while getting breakfast etc done?

FGS the world is going blooming mad.

I would just ignore the letter or write to the school thanking them for their helpful suggestion but that you will continue to give her sandwiches, yoghurt and fruit as an easy and nutritious lunch.

Oh god I always do the packed lunches the night before, this would be a nightmare for me.

Actually, there isnt too much panic re bacteria on here. There are genuine problems with keeping certain foods at a warm rather than hot temperature - rice is a classic example which needs to be hot and rapidly cooled rather than left warm. Can be really dangerous if you get certain types of food poisoning especially for children. Keeping foods for a long time at a warm rather than hot or cold temperature allows the bacteria to thrive and multiply leading to illness. I know only relevant to certain foods and unlikely or almost impossible with others, but still ... After all that is why we keep cold food at below 5 degrees in a ice pack type lunchbox when you give ham sandwiches etc. Same principle. Personally I think it is foolish of the school.

WTF?

i mean, what the hell is this schools problem?

although i do cook a batch of e.g. savoury noodles and freeze child size portions which could be done for school (so long as they had a microwave to reheat) and are currently done for my mum, (kept in tescos value storage 72p for 4)

WHY for the love of Pete? It isn't healthier than sandwich & stuff necessarily. And cold food tastes nicer than hot food eaten merely lukewarm.

more seriously: did they consult the PTA about this?

You could always choose the "take the piss option". Pop a couple of chicken nuggets and smiley faces in a thermos flask. Extra points if you have the balls for fried eggs with beans. It will be hot so they can't really complain.

Take no notice! I do them the night before-people must have a lot of time on their hands if they can faff around with hot meals first thing in the morning! We have a meal at night-that is why they have a cold packed lunch. If people wanted their DCs to have hot food they would have school dinners. I have a cold lunch. If the school say anything, just look surprised and say that as a family you have cold lunches and change the subject!

The world gets madder by the minute! Surely they are in a heated building to eat it?

Opinionatedmother, why would they consult the PTA about this? It seems to me more a Governors issue than a PTA one?

Can the school supply your dd with a hot meal or do they not have the facilities /kitchen to do that as it seems a slightly odd request