Key information
- Parents and carers can help their children have healthy lunches.
- Schools work hard to help ensure children learn about being healthy and active – and that the food served in canteens is healthy.
- The Department of Health’s Move Well Eat Well page contains more resources to help support healthy eating.
What you can do to help
As a parent or guardian, you can help your child’s development by:
- sending your child to school with water in their drink bottle
- limiting high fat, salty and sugary foods to special occasions
- packing a variety of foods from the five food groups (breads and cereals; vegetables; fruit; milk, yogurt and cheese; and meat and alternatives) in your child’s lunchbox.
Healthy lunchbox ideas
Including fruit and vegetables is important in ensuring a healthy lunchbox. These might include:
- fresh fruit
- fresh berries
- fresh vegetables
- leftover roast vegetables
- vegetable sticks and dip
- stewed fruit and yoghurt.
Healthy snacks might include:
- cheese and crackers
- a vegetable muffin
- felafel and dip
- dumplings
- pikelets
- bliss balls.
A healthy main meal should be nutritious and wholesome. This might be a:
- salad sandwich
- pasta salad
- sushi
- fried rice
- roast meat roll
- fritters and salad
- frittata and salad
- baked beans
- tuna and salad wrap.
You can download and print this list, as well as snack and warm lunch ideas, from the Department of Health website.
To find more healthy lunchbox ideas, visit the Move Well Eat Well website.
Starting the day right
- Breakfast is important because it provides the body with fuel after an overnight fast. A healthy breakfast provides your body with the nutrients and energy needed to get through the day.
- Providing children with a nutritious breakfast is important for a range of reasons. These include health, success at school and overall wellbeing.
What schools are doing
School canteens
- Healthy eating is encouraged in all Tasmanian government schools.
- School canteens have a central role in the education and health of the students and schools they serve.
- Schools work hard to help ensure children learn about being healthy and active – and that the food served in canteens is healthy!
- Many schools are participating in the SmartFood Program which offers a model of best practice for canteens. It provides guidelines and procedures for high quality and safe food service for school students and staff.
- For information on your school’s canteen operating hours, ordering arrangements and menu, contact your child’s school.
Move Well Eat Well
- Over 100 Tasmanian government schools are now participating in the Move Well Eat Well Program.
- The program works to create a whole school environment that promotes healthy eating and physical activity. It provides primary schools with a simple framework and resources to encourage healthy eating and physical activity.
- The program provides healthy lifestyle messages parents can give their children at home.
- Find out more on the Move Well Eat Well page.
More information
For more information, please:
- contact your school.
- visit the Move Well Eat Well website and look for the ‘Families’ section.
- visit School Food Matters.
- These might be more resources that relate to school staff Resources – School Food Matters, but good to look around on that site