The class timetable is not the only thing parents have to keep in mind before helping their children pack their bags.
Several schools are roping in nutritionists and designing a fixed lunch menu that students have to adhere to.
The menus have been designed keeping calorie intake, protein and good fats a child needs. Besides this, several schools have come up with their own food policy.
Over the past few months, some schools have been asking parents to pack millets in the lunchbox. Manju Balasubramanyam, principal of Delhi Public School (Bengaluru North), said they give parents a menu and ask parents to pack healthy food four times a week. “Of late, we have been asking students to bring millets not only because they are healthy, but also because their cultivation is good for the environment and helps restore the soil ecosystem,” she said.
Ban on junk food
Keeping the health of students in mind, several schools have decided to go organic, and ban caffeine and white sugar, and junk and processed food. Dakshayini Kanna, principal of Harvest International School, said the school has a ban on aerated drinks and chips. “We also have sent a recommendation on sending one fruit of their choice for the short break and one small packet of dry fruits for eating in the bus on the way home,” she said.
Ensuring fruit and vegetable intake is a part of the process. Sumanth Narayan, founder of Shanthinikethana School, said all students have to get a fruit or a vegetable every day. “Our teachers check the lunchboxes during the lunch break and ensure that every child eats a fruit or a vegetable. Besides that, we have banned pickles and oily food,” he said.
Organic food
In addition to all this, some schools which serve food to students have adopted the organic mantra in their canteens. M. Srinivasan, chairman of Gear Innovative International School, said all the 1,200 children from classes one to ten eat in the school, and the school canteens serves largely ‘organic’ food. They have tied up with farmers in Hosur to procure organic vegetables and milk.
Parents are happy that students are being encouraged to eat healthy. “The students listen to anything their teachers say. In fact, after my son’s school asked them to eat millets, my son is very conscious of the food he eats and has even experimented in the kitchen with different millets,” said Sharadha Suresh, parent of a class 10 student.
