Food for Thought: child nutrition, the school dinner and the food industry

Abstract

Health experts are now seriously concerned that the diet of our children is unbalanced, with too much salt, sugar and fat and not enough fruit and vegetables. New Labour has sought to address the problem with a raft of 'healthy-eating' initiatives and nutritional standards for school meals. But is it doing enough? In this article, I recount the history of the school dinner and offer some suggestions for future government policy.