New research from Mintel finds that Britain’s mums and dads are less than happy about this kind of intervention. Almost two thirds (64%) of parents are of the view that schools should not dictate what they should put into their child’s packed lunch.
“There’s a general feeling of resentment towards the ‘Nanny State’ approach to children’s packed lunches, as Britain’s parents are bombarded with healthy eating initiatives in schools,” said Emmanuelle Bouvier, senior consumer analyst at Mintel.
“Mums and dads may feel insulted at the assumption that they don’t know what to put into a simple packed lunch,” she added. “Many parents choose packed lunches precisely because it gives them greater control over what their child eats – more so than with school dinners. These new guidelines clearly take this control away and, understandably, this is putting people’s backs up.”
What’s more, the nation’s kids are doing a good job at eating the right things, as just 10% of parents admit that their children are not eating the healthy lunch they pack for them.
But it does seem that no matter what parents say, these guidelines have had a positive effect on their choices for packed lunches. In 2006, before this latest set of initiatives were introduced, just 66% of mums said that they try to give their children a mixture of healthy food and treats. In this latest research, as many as 86% of parents felt that they were achieving this balance.
It seems parents also accept that school dinners are becoming healthier, with as many as 71% believing that school dinners are healthier than they used to be.
“Although parents may resent Governmental healthy eating guidelines, our research does suggest that they do work and that they’ve changed people’s habits for the better,” said Emmanuelle Bouvier.
- Early in 2008, The School Food Trust recommended its Packed Lunch Policy, which requires head teachers to draw up healthy lunch box policies to highlight what makes a nutritional packed lunch.
