A survey by the BBC has revealed that healthy school meals are proving so unpopular with pupils that some school caterers are facing a financial squeeze as students vote with their feet and eat elsewhere or opt for packed lunches. The push to get better quality food onto school menus to improve the poor diet of millions of children has led to a drop in the number of pupils eating school dinners. The backlash against the so-called “Jamie Oliver effect” found that of 59 local education authorities, only 6 reported that more pupils were taking the healthier school meals compared to 35 reported numbers had.
But this need not be the case explains Andy Bettany, director of Bettaquip: ‘If you want children to pick the healthy options you have to present the food in an exciting, attractive way. Too many of our school have dated, tired looking dining facilities that does little to wet the appetite. All too often the facilities were designed for a school meals service that is hopefully now in the past. Kitchens were used to reheat ready prepared food and that is what they are still equipped to do. Virtually all of them will have a six burner range and at least one fryer, but few will have a combi oven that is now considered an essential item in a professional restaurant kitchen. Cooking in a combi is faster, reduces nutritional losses and produces very attractive looking food.
At Bourton Meadow Primary School in Buckingham the number of pupils enjoying school meals has dramatically increased with the introduction of a healthy menu. Food used to come from a central kitchen serving a number of schools in the area. Numbers taking lunch at the school slumped to a low of just 30 pupils before head teacher Gill Race took the decision to terminate the arrangement and devote school funds to provide cooking facilities on site to produce a choice of healthy meals prepared on site using fresh ingredients delivered daily. Now around 150 pupils are enjoying a freshly prepared meal every day. “I have to run school lunch as a self financing business”, explains Gill, “the initial investment came from general school funding but running costs have to be covered by the £1.50 a head meal charge”.
John Henry Newman Secondary Modern School in Stevenage started the move to healthier meals over three years ago and reports no fall in the number of pupilseating school dinners. The school has just completed a renovation of its dining facilities. The old kitchen was looking very tired’, explains Valerie Culpin, the school’s Business Manager. ‘To serve all of the pupils we had to organise lunch into 3 sittings and the two old serveries we used demanded a high level of staffing but did little to show the food in an appealing way that would help children choose the healthy options.’ During the 6 week summer break Bettaquip implemented a new kitchen and servery design that better suits the current healthy menus and produce a smoother lunch service. ‘We are serving the children very fast now’, confirms Valerie Culpin, the school’s Business Manager, ‘and can serve all of the pupils in just 2 sittings instead of the previous 3.
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