Now you've got a lunch box and a nifty thermos food jar you need to start thinking again about the really tricky bit - what to put in it.

Apparently nearly 90% of lunchboxes contain a sandwich or other "bread based" food (I think they mean a roll), and nearly 70% have a packet of crisps. The Food Standards Agency has a useful website which gives some ideas on what healthy alternatives could be with two weeks of ideas, all the nutritional information and even estimated costs.

They also explain what is recommended in the way of salt, fat and sugar intake.

To liven things up a snack bar is often a good idea. Be warned though - not all snack bars are the same - many are loaded with added sugar. At Kiddies Kitchen we have a good selection of bars with no added sugars. These include Peter Rabbit Organics bars which are dairy free, wheat free, soya and egg free, the Kidz Break range of fruit and cereal bars (raisin, chocolate flavour and blackcurrant, and the Kidz fruit bars which are 100% organic fruit. No added sugar means that whilst these products are still quite high in sugars they contain only natural fructose rather than processed glucose sugars.

The Peter Rabbit range also includes vegetable crisps cooked in sunflower oil with no added sugar which can make a nice alternative to crisps.

posted by Richard @ 3:16 AM