Local nurseries participate in national food standards survey

Two Herefordshire nurseries (one city and one rural) took part in a national survey organised by LACORS which looked into the nutritional standards of food served at nurseries. For one week, all food given to children at those nurseries was sent for analysis by Trading Standards.

A summary report of the Herefordshire findings can be downloaded from the resources box on the right. To read the full LACORS report please use the link in the external links box on the right.

Information about the survey

The lack of clear guidance about a good diet for the under fives means that even the best-intentioned nursery schools are sometimes providing small children with the wrong proportions of food and nutrients, council regulators warned today, following the publication of new research.

An extensive two year study coordinated by LACORS, part of the Local Government Association Group, found that none of the nurseries which volunteered to be involved were managing to meet all of the current guidelines on food for this age group, despite many putting a lot of effort into providing healthy menus.

The 29 councils which took part in the project, working with more than 100 nurseries, showed that food standards were improved when childcare providers were given better information by dieticians about how to give very young children the right diet. LACORS is now urging government to establish a single source of practical guidance for nurseries in association with councils and health professionals.

Problems varied across all the nurseries involved but included:

• Excessively high levels of salt
• Inappropriate portion sizes, both too large and too small 
• Shortages of carbohydrates to give children energy because some were being given too much fruit

A common problem was applying healthy eating principles which work for adults and older children to the under fives, despite their very different needs. Some nurseries also encountered pressure from parents to offer low fat options such as skimmed milk, even though this could be bad for very young children.

Chairman of LACORS, Cllr Paul Bettison, said:

"Most people concerned about healthy eating assume it's all about beating obesity, but nutrition problems can also be caused by not giving children enough of the types of food they need.

"There is a lot of awareness of how to reduce obesity in adults and older children, but the same approaches cannot just be applied to toddlers. Children under the age of five have very specific dietary needs and our research has clearly shown there isn't enough knowledge of how to meet them.

"The majority of nurseries involved in this work were trying very hard to offer children a healthy and enjoyable menu. Once councils gave them the extra information and support which was part of this research, staff were able to make rapid improvements to the diets of children in their care.

"Knowledge is the missing ingredient when it comes to making sure our children start their lives in the best possible health. This is why it is now necessary to provide simple, practical guidance so childcare workers can be more successful in offering the right mix of food, and to help parents understand what a good diet for a small child will look like."

Provided by LACORS