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31/07/06 – PARENTS URGED “DON’T FORGET FIVE-A-DAY

Look to your lunchboxes

A Scottish snacks manufacturer is urging parents to look carefully at their children’s diet when they go back to school next term - asking them to remember the Scottish Executive's "Hungry for Success" guidelines, which aim to ensure healthier eating throughout the school day by reducing saturated fat, sugar and salt content in meals.

After a long summer holiday with icecream treats and high-fat barbecues providing temptations at mealtimes, Snapz Crisps director Finlay Lockie is urging mums and dads to make sure that lunch boxes contain healthy treats for their children’s lunches and snack breaks.

Fizzy drinks and salty snacks banned

New minimum nutrition standards for school food - announced by education Minister Peter Peacock earlier this year - will come into play with the start of the next school term. The measures aim to ensure healthier eating throughout the school day, banning meals high in salt, fat and sugar and ending the sale of junk food in vending machines and tuck shops including confectionery, crisps, chocolate and fizzy drinks.

He said:
"Scottish school meals have been transformed. This is already having a positive effect on the health of our young people. But we want to go further. Our plans build on the success already seen and will make sure that every pupil gets the nutritious food they need to succeed throughout the school day.

"By ensuring that all food and drink in schools is healthy and nutritious, we are making it even easier for children to stick to the healthy options and to enjoy the long-term health benefits that come with that.”

Finding healthy replacements

However, there is some concern that although the healthy food will be compulsory on the school menus, parents may struggle to give their children the same healthy options at home – or in their packed lunches.

Finlay Lockie said: “Because our Snapz Crisps are naturally flavoured with strawberry, orange, banana and blackcurrant, they taste sweet and almost naughty. Children probably won’t even realise that what they’re eating is good for them!

“However, these crisps are not baked or fried and being made from fresh fruit and vegetables, each pack counts as one of recommended 5 pieces of fruit and veg a day. They’re also free from salt, added sugar, fat and artificial colours and preservatives, which makes them ideal alternatives to the usual deep-fried potato snacks.

A flavour for all the family

“They’re suitable for vegetarians, vegans and, being nut free and gluten free they will suit anyone suffering from allergy to nuts or wheat intolerance. We have already had massive success in the USA, and will be shipping 80,000 bags of the snacks to the state of Utah, in time for the new school term, as well as selling around 200,000 packs a month to other customers across the world.”

The range also includes crisps made from dehydrated carrot, and beetroot. These unflavoured crisps are perfect to dip in guacamole or hummus.

Healthier alternative to traditional crisps

Dietetics expert Dr Anne Payne, based at Glasgow Caledonian University said:

“Going back to school after the holidays can be a difficult time for parents as children have enjoyed picnics and barbeques and these are too often based on sugary and high fat snack foods such as burgers, crisps, sweets and cola.

It is possible to find a variety of alternatives that are both convenient and healthy, but it can take a while for children to accept new and different foods if they are not familiar with them. Dried fruit, nuts, fresh fruit, cheese, crusty bread and yoghurts are ideal for picnics or packed lunches.

“I also like dried fruit crisps as they provide a healthier alternative to traditional crisps. They are usually tasty, colourful and are quite quirky and fun. Five portions of fruit and vegetables a day may seem hard to meet, but with a little imagination and lots of gentle persistence, it gets easier to achieve.”

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