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Country Watch: England
Add England to the list of countries with sensible school meal policies. This month, following a huge campaign by celebrity chef Jamie Oliver, new nutrition standards take effect in secondary school cafeterias (the rules are already in effect in elementary schools). The new policy regulates lunches, as well as foods sold outside of meals.
The regulations are not overly stringent, but they go much further than what we have here in the United States. Schools are still allowed to serve deep-fried foods, for example, but they may only serve two of these items per week at any time or place on campus. The new rules combine nutrient-based standards with food-based standards, so schools cannot meet their vitamin targets entirely through fortified processed products.
Here are some of the highlights from the regulations:
- Schools must provide at least one portion of vegetables and at least one portion of fruit every day
- Fruits and vegetables must be provided at any school food outlet (cafeteria, student store, etc)
- Oily fish, such as salmon, must be offered at least once every three weeks
- Much to my surprise (and approval), processed meat products are heavily restricted. The regulations establish four groups of meat products (hamburger meat, sausage/lunch meat, meat pies and shaped or coated meat products) and allows schools to serve no more than one item from each group every month.
- Sweets such as chocolate bars, chocolate-coated biscuits and cereal bars are banned in school lunches and in the rest of schools as well. Cakes and biscuits are allowed only as part of a lunchtime meal (and may not replace any other component of the meal). Chocolate in any form is banned, except for cocoa powder in dessert served following a lunchtime meal.
- In meals, sodium is limited to 500 mg in elementary schools and 714 mg in secondary schools.
- The only drinks allowed during the school day are water (which must be provided at meals), non-fat or low-fat milk, fruit juice, vegetable juice, plain soy, rice, oat or yogurt drinks, tea, coffee and low-calorie hot chocolate. No preservatives, flavorings, colorings or artificial sweeteners are allowed.
As always, regulations don’t necessarily translate to magical transformations. Change can be slow to come, and The Guardian reports that three in 10 English schools do not have adequate cooking facilities. Still, the new rules are a step in the right direction.
England, Japan, France, Italy. All these countries have taken steps to provide healthy meals to students and teach good eating habits. When will the United States join them?
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