Savage cuts?

Discussions about cutting public spending strike me as very worrying. We need to keep our nerve here. It is foolish and short sighted to try and claw back money at the expense of our children. The children are not responsible for the appalling crisis that bankers created. Why are we expecting the poorest and most vulnerable to suffer the cuts?

Not only is it immoral but it is ridiculously short sighted. Let's just think back to how the current crisis in school food actually began. It was a short sighted decision by a Conservative government who spotted an opportunity to deregulate school meals to save a few quid what a miscalculation that has proved to be!

The 1980 Education Act abolished minimum nutritional standards for the meals and ended the obligation for local authorities to provide meals. This meant schools could seve up burger and chips without a hint of fruit and veg with impunity. This act coupled with the introduction of Commercial Competitive Tendering meant that authorities had to choose the cheapest of the cheap burgers on offer. This was followed by the 1986 Social Security Act which meant thousands of children lost their entitlement to free school meals.

How much have these cuts actually cost? Generations of children who ate a nutritionally poor diet have health consequences. Armies of cooks made redundant and unable to pass on their skills to the next generation.

The money the state spends on school food is a drop in the ocean compared to other areas of state spending, (£20 billion to replace Trident springs to mind) and if it means children increase their consumption of fruit and vegetables then the savings to health will be worth it.


There is an excellent article on the history of school dinners on Derek Gillard's website.

Notes from a hospital bed

Have just discovered this blog, Notes from a hospital bed, about hospital food. Some poor journalist has been struck down with a dire disease which means he is forced to endure a lengthy hospital stay. He is posting photographs of the meals. It is really worth a look.

Guide to school dinners for reception parents

I have now got a link that takes you straight to "The Little Book of Goodness". Click here

The Little Book of Goodness

If you are a parent of a reception aged child you should have got a copy of the "Little Book of Goodness" courtesy of The School Food Trust. They were sent out to all primary schools yesterday. As well as lots of pictures of typical food and information about the nutritional standards there is a competition to win a years free school lunches. Simply text the word GOODNESS to 81400. Click here for terms and conditions. There will be 50 lucky winners!

Good nutrition starts at school

I came across Kerry Trueman's blog last night. Glad we are all singing from the same hymnsheet!

The video is definitely worth watching. Our secretary Paula, found the trays painful to watch. So glad we are eating from plates in Merton.

However please don't think we have everything fixed here in Merton. Hearing some disturbing tales about how our caterers are having problems. Have a committee meeting tonight so will report back later.

Kid's cookery cards

Whilst I was on holiday Fi Bird from Stirrin Stuff published her brilliant kids cookery cards. Fi is an amazing woman - she is a mother of 6, masterchef finalist and a tireless campaigner. She is passionate about teaching kids how to cook and cares deeply about the sustainability and ethics of food production. I would recommend that you have a look at her website. She is also a prolific twitterer so you also follow her tweets!

The cookery cards are laminated, clearly written and suitable for kids from 8 upwards. You can read a review of the cards here Since I am on crutches and relieved of kitchen duties I plan to throw the cards in the direction of the kids and see what they come up with! Watch this space...

Fresh food v frozen food

There is a report in todays Telegraph that frozen food can be more nutritious than fresh food. Researchers from Sheffield Hallam University have decided that "frozen food could be more appropriate for school dinners because it creates less waste, is cheaper and more readily available"

The objection I have to have frozen food is that the majority of it is heavily processed. I have no worries about having the meals supplemented with portions of frozen veg but I do not want a return to industrially produced frozen pies, reformulated meat products, high fat pastry products etc - however cheap and easy it is for the caterers. Yes, by all means let the cooks cook double quantities to freeze and make the most of surplus tomatoes and berries - but please spare us the frozen ready meals.

Surely cooking food from scratch, using where possible seasonal and local ingredients is the best model for all food production?