A study carried out by Leeds University, commissioned by Flora, found that children’s lunchboxes are full of high levels of saturated fats, sugars and salts with too few fruits and vegetables, and with low levels of vitamins and minerals.
It found that just 1.6 per cent of children's lunchboxes surveyed met the nutritional standards for school food.
The research was carried out among 20 primary schools and 323 eight- and nine-year-olds.
The food provided in each child’s packed lunch was categorised according to the foods included in the standards for school meals set out in the School Food Plan. Researchers asked the children about their lunch and examined their lunch boxes before and after lunch to compare what had been provided with what children had actually consumed.
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