School menus still far from healthy

The staple school lunch is pies, hot-dogs or sausage rolls and less than a third of school canteens put fruit on the menu, a Green Party survey says.

The Greens released the survey of 50 primary and secondary schools yesterday, as they launched an ironic Children's Food Awards campaign aimed at shaming companies.

Winners included Coca-Cola for putting vending machines in schools and McDonalds for over-advertising.

The survey monitored what foods were being sold to children without a packed lunch.

It found almost three-quarters of schools sold hot chips or wedges, while nearly a quarter did not offer rolls or sandwiches. Of those that did, 24 per cent charged less for a pie.

Under a third had yoghurt on the menu and just 16 per cent sold muesli bars, but 80 per cent offered cookies, cakes, chocolate and donuts.

Sue Kedgley, the Greens' health spokeswoman, said the results made shocking reading.

While many schools did offer healthy lunches, they were also selling foods loaded with fat and sugar.

"If we want to know why childhood obesity and diabetes rates are escalating, we need look no further than school lunches," Ms Kedgley said.

A child eating a pie, chips, a cookie and a soft-drink for lunch was likely to consume the equivalent of 10 teaspoons of fat and 20 of sugar.

Dietitian Sarah Crawford said children would always buy pies and chips over healthier foods when given the choice.

The fact that in 24 per cent of schools it cost more to buy a sandwich or a roll than a pie also encouraged them to eat unhealthy foods.

"Children are being widely provided with food that is high in fat and salt, which provides instant gratification, but guidelines say New Zealanders should be eating five pieces of fruit or vegetables a day," Ms Crawford said.

"The fact that several schools did not even provide sandwiches or rolls will only reinforce bad habits."

She said schools seemed to base their menu decisions on profit and convenience rather than the health of the children.

The Greens are using the survey results to launch a school food campaign.

"Most parents would not feed their children a constant diet of pies, sausage rolls, donuts and chips, so why do we allow our schools to sell this sort of food?" Ms Kedgley said.

The campaign will lobby for policy changes that would mean schools sold only healthy food and drink.

The Government announced changes to its National Education Goals last year to give priority to physical education.

Ms Kedgley said similar action was needed on food and nutrition.

"The Government launched a National Strategy on Nutrition [Healthy Eating, Healthy Action] with great fanfare last year, but the truth is that much of the food being sold in schools is undermining this strategy," she said.

"With childhood obesity, type 2 diabetes and dental decay escalating, Government leadership is urgently needed to change this and require all schools to sell only healthy food and drink."

THE GREEN PARTY GONGS

* Pester Power Award "for the company with the most manipulative marketing ploy to seduce children into wanting its products" - McDonalds.

* Advertising Assault Award "for a television advertisement targeted at children and young adolescents that aims to persuade them to eat unhealthy fatty, sugary, additive-laden or salty food" - McDonalds

* Trojan Horse Award "for an insidious advertising campaign that craftily pushes unhealthy food or drink into schools" - Coca-Cola.

* Fancy Dress Award "for the worst packaging of a food product high in sugar, fat, salt or additives that is obviously designed to win the hearts of children, enlisting them as sales agents to pester their parents to buy it" - Kellogg's Eat My Shorts cereal.

* Tempting Tots Award "for a food snack loaded with additives, sugar, salt or fat, shaped and coloured specifically to appeal to young children" - Wonka Nerd Ropes.